Last verified: May 2026
Tennessee Is At-Will — No Cannabis Carve-Out
Tennessee is an at-will employment state. The default rule: an employer may terminate an employee at any time, for any lawful reason or no reason at all, and an employee may quit at any time. Tennessee has not enacted any statutory carve-out for cannabis or hemp-cannabinoid use comparable to:
- California Cal. Govt. Code § 12954: prohibits employer discrimination based on cannabis use off-duty (effective January 1, 2024).
- New York Labor Law § 201-d: protects off-duty cannabis use as "lawful recreational activity."
- New Jersey Cannabis Regulatory, Enforcement Assistance, and Marketplace Modernization Act § 24:6I-52: prohibits employer discrimination based on lawful cannabis use.
- Connecticut Public Act 21-1 § 122: limits employer drug-testing rights with respect to off-duty cannabis use.
Tennessee provides no analogous protection. An employer may terminate or refuse to hire based on a positive cannabis screen at the employer’s discretion.
Hemp-Derived Cannabinoid Positive Screens
Standard urine drug tests detect THC metabolites without distinguishing the molecular source. Hemp-derived delta-9 THC, hemp-derived delta-8 THC, hemp-derived THCA flower, and CBD products with trace THC will produce the same positive result on a standard drug screen as marijuana use. This creates substantial workplace risk for Tennessee residents using legal hemp-derived products under the pre-Public-Chapter-526 framework or under any post-January-1-2026 product permitted under TABC regulation.
Julian’s Law / CBD-Oil Affirmative Defense Does Not Apply to Workplaces
Tennessee’s narrow CBD-oil affirmative defense under T.C.A. § 39-17-402(16)(F) is a defense at criminal trial — not employment protection. A patient using legal CBD oil under the affirmative-defense framework who tests positive on an employer drug screen has no Tennessee statutory protection from termination or refusal to hire.
What an Employer May Lawfully Do
- Pre-employment testing: lawful at employer’s discretion.
- Random testing: lawful for non-protected workforce; Drug-Free Workplace Program participating employers receive workers’ compensation discounts.
- Post-accident testing: lawful and routine; positive screen may be basis for workers’ comp denial under DFWP framework.
- Reasonable-suspicion testing: lawful under standard at-will-plus-DFWP frameworks.
- Refuse to hire: lawful based on positive pre-employment screen.
- Terminate: lawful based on positive screen, regardless of off-duty timing.
Limited Protections That Do Exist
Some narrow protections operate around — but not specifically for — cannabis users:
- Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA): federal protection for qualifying disabilities. Cannabis use itself is not a protected disability under the ADA (cannabis remains a federal Schedule III substance after the April 28, 2026 rescheduling, but is not a "currently legal" drug; the ADA Title I § 12114(a) "current illegal drug user" exclusion may apply). Underlying conditions (cancer, MS, PTSD, epilepsy) may be ADA-protected.
- Tennessee Disability Act T.C.A. § 8-50-103: state-law disability discrimination prohibition. Same ADA-style framework.
- Tennessee Lawful Use of Agricultural Products Act: protects use of "agricultural products" off-duty — courts have not extended to cannabis or hemp-cannabinoid products.
Federal-Contractor and DOT-Regulated Employees
Federal contractors, federal employees, and DOT-regulated transportation workers (CDL drivers under FMCSA Part 382, pilots under FAA, railroad workers under FRA Part 219, maritime workers under USCG Part 16) face categorical cannabis prohibition under 49 C.F.R. Part 40. Federal Schedule III rescheduling (April 28, 2026) does not change DOT testing rules. Tennessee’s major DOT-regulated employer footprint is substantial: FedEx (Memphis), the trucking-and-logistics industry around Chattanooga and Knoxville, the railroad workforce, etc. See FedEx / DOT page.
Federal Schedule III Rescheduling and the Workplace
The DOJ Schedule III rescheduling order published April 28, 2026 (91 Fed. Reg. 22714) reclassifies cannabis from Schedule I to Schedule III. The order does NOT change:
- State criminal prohibition (Tennessee Schedule VI under T.C.A. § 39-17-415).
- DOT testing rules (49 C.F.R. Part 40 Schedule II remains the cutoff).
- Federal-employee testing rules (Mandatory Guidelines for Federal Workplace Drug Testing).
- Federal-contractor Drug-Free Workplace Act § 5151 et seq. obligations.
- Any Tennessee employer’s discretion to test, terminate, or refuse to hire based on cannabis use.
Tennessee Workplace Cannabis Reality
- At-will employment; no statutory cannabis or hemp-cannabinoid carve-out.
- Standard drug screens cannot distinguish hemp-derived THC from marijuana-derived THC.
- Julian’s Law / CBD-oil affirmative defense applies only to criminal cases, not employment.
- DFWP participation: employer-side workers’ comp discount (5%); employee-side termination risk.
- Federal Schedule III rescheduling does not change Tennessee workplace policies.
For in-depth cannabis education, dosing guides, safety information, and research summaries, visit our partner site TryCannabis.org
Related on this site: Tennessee Drug-Free Workplace Program, Fort Campbell & Y-12 / ORNL, Nashville Music Industry.