Amazon said in 2021 that it would stop including marijuana in pre-employment drug screening for jobs not regulated by the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT). The company cited changing state laws, fairness toward people using cannabis legally off duty, the impact it said testing had on people of color, and the need to widen its applicant pool. Industry experts and an employment lawyer also pointed to hiring pressure and the complications of applying one policy across many states—but those interpretations are distinct from Amazon’s stated reasons.
What Amazon changed in 2021
In a June 2021 announcement, Dave Clark, then CEO of Worldwide Consumer, said Amazon would no longer include marijuana in its comprehensive pre-employment drug screening program for positions not regulated by DOT. Clark said the company would instead treat marijuana like alcohol in that screening policy. The announcement described a change to pre-employment screening, not an end to all workplace drug testing. Amazon’s announcement
Amazon said it would continue on-the-job impairment checks and drug and alcohol testing after an incident. The policy announcement therefore did not say that cannabis use at work was permitted. It also did not extend the described screening change to DOT-regulated positions. Amazon’s announcement
Why Amazon said it relaxed marijuana screening
Amazon’s fuller explanation came in a September 1, 2021 letter to Senators Chuck Schumer, Ron Wyden, and Cory Booker. The company gave several reasons for its decision:
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- State laws were diverging. Amazon said different state rules made it difficult to maintain an equitable, consistent nationwide pre-employment marijuana-testing program.
- It viewed off-duty legal use as a fairness issue. The company said it did not feel right denying someone a job because of off-duty conduct that a state had legalized.
- It said testing created an unequal employment barrier. Amazon stated that marijuana screening disproportionately affected people of color and limited access to employment. The letter did not provide a numerical estimate of that impact.
- It wanted a larger applicant pool. Amazon tied the change to its growth and hiring needs.
Amazon also said it reinstated eligibility for former employees terminated after non-negative THC results in random testing, and for applicants deferred after THC results in standard pre-employment screening. Brian Huseman, Amazon’s vice president of public policy, described the move as an effort to “largely end pre-employment testing of marijuana as a condition of employment.” Amazon’s September 2021 letter to Congress
What industry experts and lawyers added
Hiring pressure was an expert interpretation
GeekWire quoted Cy Scott, co-founder of Leafly and Headset, who said, “I think fundamentally it’s about hiring.” Scott argued that legal cannabis use could make screening a hiring obstacle for a large employer. That is his interpretation of Amazon’s decision, not a separate reason confirmed by the company. GeekWire’s June 9, 2021 report
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One policy across many states creates legal complexity
Employment attorney Jared Van Kirk told GeekWire he was not surprised a multistate employer would be open to changing its approach. His comments reflected the difficulty of applying a consistent policy where state laws and protections differ, as well as the value of widening the hiring pool. GeekWire’s June 9, 2021 report
Talk of a future cannabis market was speculation
Scott also said it was “hard to ignore a potential emerging market,” speculating that Amazon might want to be positioned for a future legal cannabis market. The cited report does not establish that Amazon planned to sell cannabis; that idea should not be confused with the company’s stated policy rationale. GeekWire’s June 9, 2021 report
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The legal backdrop was changing, but the cited figures are historical
In a June 4, 2021 snapshot, SHRM reported that at least 36 states had legalized medical cannabis and 16 of those states allowed recreational use. Those are figures from 2021, not current state counts. SHRM also described varied employment protections, exceptions, and rules for safety-sensitive jobs. Its examples—including protections in New York and New Jersey—should not be treated as a current legal guide. SHRM’s June 2021 report
The distinction between a positive test and observable impairment mattered in SHRM’s discussion. Attorney Marissa Mastroianni noted that, under the New Jersey law she discussed, a positive result alone did not necessarily bar employer action where there was other evidence, such as observed intoxication. She also advised employers to train managers to recognize possible impairment. The specific legal examples are dated; employers need to verify current rules for every jurisdiction where they operate. SHRM’s June 2021 report
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What the announcement does—and does not—tell applicants today
The announcement explains Amazon’s 2021 policy change, but the cited sources do not establish current screening rules for every Amazon job, location, or hiring process. A role’s DOT-regulated status was an explicit dividing line in the announcement, and Amazon said it retained impairment checks and post-incident testing. Applicants should confirm the screening requirements for the specific position and location rather than assume the 2021 change applies universally.
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- CERTIFIED AND TRUSTED TEST: Our thc tests for home use detects (THC) metabolites up to 5+ days after consumption. The thc test kit complies with all the applicable regulations.
- HIGHLY ACCURATE FOR HOME USE. Conveniently and privately test as often as you want from the comfort of home. Walk you through a detox program, preparing to pass a pre-employment screening, or just random testing.
- EASY TO USE AND FAST RESULTS: Simply immerse the test into urine for 10 seconds. Bold and solid lines appear instantly. Two lines are present indicate a negative result; if only the control line appears, it's positive.
- Customer Usage Advisory: Testing with any other substance, such as water, is very likely to produce incorrect outcomes.
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