Medical pot user who lost job after drug test takes case over unemployment to Vermont Supreme Court

By LISA RATHKE
Associated Press

MONTPELIER, Vt. (AP) — A Vermont man who lost his job after he said a random drug test showed he’d used medical marijuana off duty for chronic pain has appealed to the Vermont Supreme Court saying he shouldn’t have been denied unemployment benefits. He was terminated for misconduct from a job at the Marble Valley Regional Transit District in Rutland where he said he cleaned and fueled buses, and drove them into and out of the garage. A lawyer for Vermont Department of Labor said the court should affirm the Vermont Employment Security Board’s decision about disqualifying him for the benefits because he was discharged for misconduct for violating an acknowledged workplace safety policy.