Short Discussion homework assignment:
No APA format, only talk about from personal opinion, half length of “Example Answer”, reference at the end, No Grammarly or ANY AI tool.
Current Trend Article Discussion – Eliminating Pre-Employment Testing for Marijuana
This week we focus more heavily on casino regulation and this week’s emerging topic is the crossroads that we are at as an industry with regards to the widespread legalization of marijuana at the state level despite marijuana still being illegal at the Federal level.
How are regulators dealing with the fact that you have many licensees (whether operators, managers, employees, etc.) who are knowingly violating Federal law?
And on an operational level, how are operators navigating the widespread use of marijuana? I recently recommended to Sky Ute Casino in Colorado, for example, to eliminate pre-employment testing for marijuana (but kept screening for other banned substances) as they could not find enough employees who could pass drug screening, especially in food and beverage. How do operators rationalize needing to maintain employment levels given so many potential hires, again, violating Federal law?
*******************EXAMPLES Answer***********************************
The United States of America has gone back and forth, increasing, and decreasing the degrees of criminalization of cannabis, alcohol, gambling, and prostitution throughout its history. Many will support morality; few could deny the revenue generated for government institutions from taxation. At some level, we have all interacted with, consumption of, involved with, known of, acted against, or been a part of something to do with cannabis (illicit drugs, schedule 1 class drugs, gambling, alcohol, or prostitution.
Being in the Casino Resort industry most acknowledge their knowing each of those industries occurs within the casino resort industry more than any other industry. The black market supports all requests for things people have little to no access to. Money laundering is what makes the black market, the underworld able to exist. Money laundering through casino operations is one-way criminals and casinos knowingly or unknowingly make monetary currency whole again on paper as far as the participating parties are concerned, and the regulators and governmental institutions that want to crack down on money laundering.
A person could do a Google search of How successful is the licensed and regulated cannabis industry in the US? Topics will vary, no story is without hard work, many have experienced disappointment through competition, regulations, supply and demand, the whole process of checks and balances at the local and state level, the conversation of product consistency, how cannabis use migrates into mainstream business-like casino resorts, how to protect non-consumers, children, and the public at large. When a topic of conversation is so robust, and concerns are valid at every level we acknowledge that this is not a conversation about processing better drinking water.
Whether it is alcohol and drugs, gambling, or sex for hire nothing is guaranteed to remain legal at any level in the US. The US government has gone so far as the 18th Amendment for alcohol and gambling (5)(6). The 1931 Marijuana Tax Act, 1970 (8)(9) classification of cannabis as a Schedule 1 Class illicit drug, and the 1910 Mann Act (7) forbidding the interstate trafficking of white women and girls for immoral use, yet each is either legal, decriminalized or in the topic of discussion of doing either or, or both. The US Government has not decriminalized psychoactive cannabis, declassified it from the Schedule 1 class drug category, or legalized it. The states are running their programs with a strong misunderstanding at the local community level of what is allowed in their local communities and what is not. The conversation entirely comes down to the local communities, then the conversation transitions to how businesses will operate their business respectively.
In Las Vegas licensed casino operators are faced with a significant problem. To the point, if cannabis hemp with a THC level no higher than .3% with no psychoactive element to the portion being smoked freely through a Las Vegas Strip casino resort, that property would be changed forever and could not go back to non-cannabis use. A hybrid-based cannabis casino resort would be difficult to operate based on peoples desire to maintain their senses. Consumables are a different discussion. To imagine a brand-recognized casino resort creating a hybrid cannabis consumption program would be surprising and very difficult to manage from a social perspective. Designated rooms (keys), amenities, beach club experiences, gaming floor, and poker room separation would have to be increased to meet demand, or notices of authorization not holding the casino responsible for any tragic events due to visitors, guests, or employees not being responsible throughout the property. Anyone at the property without designated areas for consumption exposed to 2nd hand smoke of cannabis will be high every day, every time.
When cannabis-psychoactive with THC above 30% for recreational enters the conversation the operating expenses will increase to accommodate all kinds of high THC-related incidents. It is good that the state of Nevada is suggesting licensed casino operators host conventions, tradeshows, and events that showcase products and promote conversation. The infrastructure and design of the Las Vegas casino resort will be changed if allowed to be used within a hybrid use program. Where cannabis is infused into food or skin-to-skin contact services. Not only disclosure must be made about the use of a THC %, and known type (sativa, indica, hybrid), but any cooking, serving, or consuming utensils could not be interchangeable with non-cannabis products. Once an item in the Food and Beverage, or spa segments of the hospitality industry is used there is no going back for those items.
Not everyone wants to be high from some unknown type of cannabis that cannot have a consistent reaction to every person who consumes the same product at the same time. Cannabis is very different than alcohol and is not guaranteed to simply mellow a person out, or provide boosts of energy, or focus. Reactions could go wrong quickly for some consumers of cannabis or those affected by secondhand exposure to the product.
Known employees who consume cannabis will have their own unique usage stories, operators will need to manage accordingly. The drug tests are a vetting point for employment and should be recognized as such for liability reasons.
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