What Employers Can Learn from Recent California Disability Discrimination Settlement
On June 12th, 2025, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EECO) confirmed that a California employer entered into a unique disability discrimination settlement. Elaine’s Pet Resorts, a business with locations in Fresno and Madera, reportedly withdrew job positions from applicants due to post-offer drug screening, even though the substances in question were medically prescribed. Here, our California workplace solutions lawyer for employers highlights three key lessons that your company can take from this case.
Three Lessons for Employers in California
- The ADA and FEHA Protect Workers Who Take Medically-Prescribed Drugs
People with disabilities are protected under the federal Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and California’s FEHA. Notably, FEHA goes beyond the ADA in protecting job applicants and employees with disabilities, including people who take legally-prescribed medication. In California, employers must not refuse to hire and cannot terminate someone with a positive drug test solely due to lawful prescription use. Post-offer of employment, such inquiries or screening must be job-related and consistent with business necessity. Further, the employer must engage in a good-faith interactive process to explore whether a reasonable accommodation would be appropriate.
Compliance Tip: Any medical information revealed during testing must be treated confidentially and kept separate from a worker’s more general employment file.
- Off-Duty Cannabis Use is Explicitly Protected By California Law
Medical marijuana is a big workplace issue in California. As of January 1, 2024, California enacted Assembly Bill 2188. That law shields employees from adverse action (discipline, termination, etc.) based solely on lawful, off-duty cannabis. To be clear, the law does not protect actual impairment at work, nor does it extend to roles in construction trades or positions requiring federal background checks. Still, employers must also avoid testing for non-psychoactive metabolites. If any testing of cannabis is performed at all, it should use methods that detect only active THC presence.
Compliance Tip: Businesses should revise drug policies, clearly define prohibited in-work impairment, and ensure testing aligns with impairment, not legal off-duty use.
- Employers Should Be Careful With Post-Employment Offer Drug Screenings
Finally, employers should be very careful with post-employment offer drug screenings as a general practice, so they do not violate their responsibilities under the ADA, the FEHA or other California laws. California and federal guidance draw a crucial line: pre-offer drug testing must only screen for illegal substances and must not probe for prescription medications. To avoid inadvertently discriminating or invading privacy, employers should defer drug tests until after a conditional offer is extended and ensure tests focus solely on illegal drug detection. If prescription drugs appear, employers must allow applicants to explain their circumstances and whether the employee can still perform the job duties, and the employer must keep that information confidential.
Contact Our California Employment Attorney Today
At Sloat Law Group, APC, our California employment attorney is committed to providing solutions-focused representation businesses and organizations. If you have any questions about an employment law issue, please do not hesitate to contact us today for a confidential consultation. Our firm handles employment issues for employers throughout all of California.
Source:
eeoc.gov/newsroom/elaines-pet-resorts-settles-eeoc-disability-discrimination-lawsuit
