A New York City man has filed a class-action lawsuit against Amazon after his job offer was revoked after he tested positive for marijuana during a drug test.
According to the Daily News, in the lawsuit, Michael Thomas said he was offered a position at an Amazon warehouse in Staten Island last November as a package sorter. After not hearing from the company for more than a month, Thomas called them only to discover that he was removed from further consideration. The job, which pays $17.25 per hour, was contingent upon the results of the test.
Read More: Steph and Ayesha Curry to host ‘Tattletales’ revival on HBO Max
The suit, filed in Brooklyn Federal Court on Friday, claims that Amazon violated the New York Human Rights Laws, which prohibits pre-employment marijuana testing except for employees who will operate heavy machinery. TMZ reported that he’s suing for damages and an injunction to block the company from further revoking job offers due to marijuana.
As of May 10, 2020, “covered employers are not permitted to test job candidates for marijuana or tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) as a condition of employment. There are several exceptions, discussed further below, where testing job applicants for marijuana or THC for specific kinds of jobs is still permitted,” according to the Jackson Lewis Drug and Alcohol Testing Law Advisor website.
The suit argues that the job didn’t meet the specifications for a marijuana test. Amazon hasn’t responded to the accusation.
“A significant portion of the general public now uses some form of recreational marijuana,” Thomas’s lawyers said in the lawsuit.
“With substantial growth and turnover, the high number of employees working at its New York City facilities, the prevalence of marijuana usage and Amazon’s uniform policy to screen prospective employee for marijuana use. Amazon has refused to hire more than 100 individuals because they tested positive for marijuana in a pre-employment drug screen.”
Read More: JLo and ARod on breakup: ‘We are working through some things’
This is just one of the many recent lawsuits filed against the company. A Black senior-level manager filed a lawsuit against Amazon and two executives over allegations of race and gender discrimination in addition to pay inequity. The manager claimed that she was sexually harassed and assaulted by one of the former executives, according to USA Today.
Parler dropped its federal lawsuit against Amazon and filed a new lawsuit in state court after the tech giant pulled its support from the social media platform due to violent posts associated with the Jan. 6 U.S. Capitol riots. The platform accused Amazon of leaking “false allegations to the press,” in order to damage their reputation.
New York Attorney General Letitia James filed a lawsuit against Amazon last month for unlawfully firing employees who spoke out about safety conditions during the coronavirus pandemic.
Have you subscribed to theGrio’s podcast “Dear Culture”? Download our newest episodes now!
TheGrio is now on Apple TV, Amazon Fire, and Roku. Download theGrio today!