Amazon will pressure government to legalize marijuana

Amazon is further relaxing its marijuana testing policies, as it steps up its support for federal legislation to legalize drugs.

In a blog post Tuesday, Amazon HR boss Beth Galetti wrote that the company had “reinstated employment eligibility” for former employees and applicants who were laid off or deferred during random or pre-use marijuana tests.

“Pre-employment marijuana testing has disproportionately affected communities of color by delaying placement and, by extension, economic growth, and we believe this unfair treatment is unacceptable,” said Galetti.

Amazon first announced in June that it would no longer screen some of its employees for marijuana. The only job applicants Amazon will select for the drug are those applying for positions regulated by the Department of Transportation, such as truck drivers and heavy equipment operators.

Amazon also said it would always conduct impairment checks at work and perform drug and alcohol tests after any incident.

The company relaxed its marijuana standards after recognizing that a growing number of U.S. states were legalizing cannabis, Galetti said. He also realized that it would help him attract more applicants in an increasingly tight labor market.

“Amazon’s pace of growth means we’re always looking to hire great new team members, and we’ve found that eliminating pre-employment testing for cannabis allows us to expand our pool of candidates. “said Galetti.

Amazon, which has been in the midst of hiring since the start of the pandemic, has dangled a number of incentives to job seekers, such as hiring bonuses and free tuition. In an additional effort to recruit workers, Amazon has encouraged its network of contract delivery companies to prominently advertise that they do not track marijuana use, according to Bloomberg.

Amazon is also lobbying the federal government to legalize marijuana. The company said in June that it supports the Marijuana Opportunity Reinvestment and Expungement Act, which aims to decriminalize cannabis at the federal level, clear criminal records and invest in affected communities.

On Tuesday, Galetti said that Amazon recently approved a similar bill, called the Cannabis Administration and Opportunity Act. In a letter to lawmakers on the bill this month, Amazon urged Congress to strike off non-violent federal marijuana crimes and allow sentencing of anyone serving federal prison time for those crimes, while by pushing states to take similar measures.