High Times

• Author: Paul Wearing
• Pages: 83-85

•83

CHAPTER ELEVEN

High Times

What You Should Know

On June 21, 2018, the federal government enacted the Cannabis Act1

(which made it legal for persons eighteen years or older to possess can-

nabis (marijuana) for use in a non-public place.

This legislation caused the provinces to enact their own laws regard-

ing the sale, purchase, and use of cannabis (marijuana).

In the province of Ontario the use of marijuana in the workplace is

regulated by two laws: the Cannabis Act, 2017 and the Smoke-Free Ontario

Act, 2017.

In Ontario, the Cannabis Act, 2017 prohibits a person from consuming

cannabis in a public place or a workplace within the meaning of the Oc-

cupational Health and Safety Act. A “public place” is def‌ined as including

any place to which the public has access to as of right or by invitation,

whether express or implied. A “workplace” is def‌ined in the Occupational

Health and Safety Act as any land, premises, location, or thing at, in, or

near which a worker works.

However, the primary law2 on the prohibition of marijuana use in the

workplace is the Smoke-Free Ontario Act, 2017. This law prohibits smok-

ing or holding lighted cannabis in any “enclosed public place” or “en-

closed workplace” as well as some other non-work spaces designated as

smoke-free and vape-free.

An “enclosed public place” is def‌ined in the Smoke-Free Ontario Act,