Cannabis use: What you need to know

On Wednesday recreational cannabis use became legal here in Canada. What does that mean for Velsoft employees at HQ in Nova Scotia and for team members who visit from our other offices?

Here’s what you need to know:

First of all, here’s the Alcohol and Drug Usage policy from the Velsoft Employee Policy Manual:

Velsoft is committed to providing a safe, healthy, and professional work environment. This policy outlines the procedures and consequences of any employee at work while “under the influence.” For the purposes of this manual, “under the influence” refers to having taken drugs, alcohol, and/or any controlled substance for which the employee does not have a prescription.

Being at work “under the influence” will not be tolerated as it is contrary to the environment Velsoft wishes to nurture. This includes reporting for work smelling of alcohol, which will be considered as being “under the influence.”

Any employee reporting to work “under the influence” will be required to immediately leave the premises and will be subject to discipline, up to and including dismissal, even for a first offence. Employees are to refrain from using alcohol, drugs or controlled substances for which they do not have a prescription for six hours before the start of their shift.

Next, we just released a guide to cannabis that will help you understand more about cannabis and its legalization. Read Conversations That Matter: Cannabis Awareness here.

If you want even more information, we have a great course — Cannabis and the Workplace — which discusses workplace impacts and medical cannabis, along with debunking some of the myths associated with cannabis.

These are the rules…

While recreational cannabis use is legal in Canada, each province and territory has established its own regulations, which must be respected. Here in Nova Scotia:

• You must be 19 to use, buy, grow, or possess cannabis.
• The Smoke-free Places Act applies to the use of combustible cannabis in public places, but you can use it in the privacy of your own home. Landlords may establish other rules about using or growing cannabis.
• Cannabis cannot be used in any form in vehicles, by passengers or drivers.
• Adults aged 19 and over are allowed to possess up to 30 grams of dried cannabis or its equivalent in public.
• Adults of legal age are permitted to grow up to four cannabis plants per household. Be aware of local bylaws that may further restrict cultivation.
• The NSLC is the only legally authorized retailer of cannabis in the province.
• Transporting cannabis in a vehicle is subject to the same rules as alcohol. It must be in a closed, sealed package and out of reach from anyone in the vehicle.
• The same rules that were in place before Oct. 17 regarding medical cannabis are still in effect. The use of medical cannabis has been legal in Canada since 2001.

Here’s some other stuff that’s important:

• It’s illegal to take any amount of cannabis across Canada’s international borders.
• Don’t drive while high. This can result in injury or death and is illegal. Law enforcement officers are trained to detect drug-impaired driving using a variety of methods such as sobriety testing, oral fluid samples, and urine or blood samples. Consequences of driving while impaired include fines, criminal charges, or jail time.
• Strict penalties are in place for anyone who sells or provides cannabis to youth under the legal age.
• The effects of impairment from using cannabis can last at least six hours or longer after use, depending on how it was consumed (smoked, inhaled or ingested) and how much was taken.
• Cannabis-infused products, or edibles, are not yet legal in Canada. You’re allowed to make your own at home for personal use, but the federal government hasn’t developed regulations yet about companies making and selling these products. It’s hoped that this may happen within a year.

Using cannabis can:

• Impair your ability to drive safely or operate equipment by slowing reaction times, reducing your ability to pay attention, and diminishing coordination.
• Make it more difficult to learn and remember things.
• Reduce your ability to perform well on the job.
• Affect mood and feelings, causing anxiety or panic.
• Affect mental health by triggering psychotic episodes, experiencing paranoia, having disorganized thoughts, and causing hallucinations.
• Pose long-term health risks such as harming the lungs (the smoke contains many of the same harmful substances as tobacco smoke), affecting mental health (regular use makes one more likely to experience anxiety, depression, psychosis and schizophrenia), and becoming addicted.

If you want to learn more, these are good resources:

https://www.canada.ca/en/services/health/campaigns/cannabis/canadians.html

https://www.novascotia.ca/cannabis/laws/

What’s in the Pipeline:

• Sydney is creating custom eLearning courses.
• Dylan is creating graphics for custom and internal customers.
• Ben is working on custom projects.
• Carol is writing blogs and refreshing courses.
• Jan is working on CA course components and eLearning QA.

Course Count:

Courses released this month:

Introduction to HTML and CSS Coding

Identifying and Combatting Fake News

Here is the official count of courses for both courseware and eLearning, broken down by Computer and SoftSkills.

While cannabis use is a serious subject, we thought we’d end on a lighter note…

Cannabis humor

• If the whole world smoked a joint at the same time, there would be world peace for at least two hours, followed by a global food shortage.
• Q: How do you know when you are stoned? A: When you are too phoned to stone home.
• Q: How do you get a one-armed stoner out of a tree? A: Wave.
• Q: Why did the pot head plant cheerios? A: He thought they were donut seeds.
• Q: How do you know you’re a pothead? A: You studied five days for a urine test.
• Q: How did the pothead burn his ear?  A: He answered the phone while ironing his clothes.
• Q: Why don’t stoners get into arguments? A: Because they take the high road.
• Q: What is the difference between a drunk and a stoner at a stop sign?  A: The drunk guy runs it and the stoner waits for it to turn green!