Nevada has become one of several states in the US to legalize the recreational use of marijuana. However, there is still confusion, especially among top hotels and casinos at the strip, as to how to proceed with these new laws.
It is worth noting that traditionally, major hotels like Hooters have prohibited the use of marijuana in their premises. These casinos also screen employees for drug use, including marijuana use. Now that the state has legalized the recreational use of pot, there are those who feel that such screening is no longer needed.
Well, it doesn’t seem like many strip hotels are taking the bait yet. Most have chosen to retain their no-tolerance policy towards marijuana. One of the reasons why this has remained the case is simply because of the fact that marijuana use is still illegal at the federal level.
The laws in Nevada also prohibit the use of pot in public. Since many casinos would consider themselves public places, you can understand why they remain unsure about the idea of opening up marijuana use in their hotels.
Hooters Hotel and Casino, which is now rebranded to OYO Las Vegas, does not have a specific marijuana policy. However, just like most hotels at the strip, it remains closed to the idea of letting people smoke weed inside the hotel premises.
But there are different accounts of how this no-tolerance policy on marijuana works. Even though Hooters insists the use of marijuana among customers is not allowed, when you look at reviews of the hotel online, you can clearly see that some people have seen marijuana used in there.
The big question though is on whether employees are allowed to do so. Well, many hotels at the strip have a no-tolerance policy for drug use among their employees. Even though marijuana is legal, these hotels do not want employees showing up high. In other words, while they are not going to stop employees from getting high in their own free time, they will expect them to avoid pot in the workplace.
But this may change in the future. In fact, we have seen some reports that a few hotels are abolishing mandatory drug tests on their employees. In essence, they are giving their workers leeway to smoke pot anytime they want, even when they are working. But right now, there are no specific laws in Nevada that govern workplace usage of marijuana.
At the moment, there is just one single blanket regulation that makes the recreational use of marijuana legal. This has brought a lot of concussion among employers who would want to enforce their own drug policies without infringing upon the state law on marijuana.
Hooters Hotel and Casino, in particular, seems to be lost on this. We don’t know if the hotel will craft a marijuana use policy for its employees anytime soon but right now the information available about such a policy direction is very limited.
