How Would You Handle an Employee Who Smells Like Pot?

JANE WAS SEATED at her desk, finishing up the week’s payroll for her dog daycare business. Just as she closed her laptop, there was a knock on her office door. “Come on in,” she called out.

Caitlin, one of Jane’s longest-tenured daycare attendants, poked her head in the office, asking, “Got a minute to chat?” Jane smiled and gestured toward the empty chair on the other side of her desk. Caitlin was a reliable worker, and as far as Jane was concerned, a pretty low-maintenance employee. She assumed this would be a quick chat about a vacation day. “Of course! Good timing. I just finished up payroll. What can I do for you?”

Caitlin carefully shut the door behind her before taking a seat. She then quickly looked over her shoulder to be sure the door was closed. In a hushed tone, Caitlin began, “This feels really awkward. It’s about Bob.” Cocking her head, Jane’s eyes narrowed. She knew Caitlin hated to “tattle” on other employees — even new hires, like Bob. He had joined the team as a daycare attendant the previous week. Caitlin had even sat in on Bob’s interview, giving him her stamp of approval.

“When I clocked out for lunch and went to get my keys, I noticed that the hallway by the staff lockers reeks,” Caitlin continued, visibly uncomfortable with the topic of discussion. “It smells super strongly of pot. I know a couple of us partake, but I’ve never smelled anything in here before. I really think it’s coming from Bob, because … well, Bob also smells like pot.”

Jane shook her head slowly and sighed. She had what she thought was a solid policy in her employee handbook, prohibiting marijuana, alcohol and tobacco products in her facility as well as their use anywhere on the property. All were legal in her state, but it wasn’t anything she wanted around the dogs. It dawned on her that the policy didn’t prohibit smelling like one of those substances, though.

“Thank you for telling me,” Jane replied. “I really appreciate your candor.” She paused and asked. “He’s not … he doesn’t seem high, right?” Caitlin quickly exclaimed, “No!” She then lowered her voice, “No, not even a little bit. I think it’s just on his clothes. And otherwise, he’s doing great.” Jane breathed a sigh of relief. “Thank goodness. Alright, I’ll take care of this. Thank you so much for telling me,” she added. “You’re welcome,” Caitlin nearly whispered. She got up from her seat briskly, then said, “I knew you would want to know.” With that, Caitlin made a hasty exit.

Now alone, Jane shook her head and stared blankly at her closed laptop. Sometimes it felt like staff members were inventing new ways to test her handbook policies — and her patience! Jane’s mind wandered to one of last summer’s part-time hires. Despite a squeaky-clean appearance at the interview, she came to work each day with strong body odor. After a few shifts, an assistant manager mentioned it to the employee and she never returned. Jane really didn’t want to alienate a new hire, but also recognized the daycare dogs couldn’t go home smelling like marijuana.

Jennie D.
MOUNT PLEASANT, SC

We have a very strict hygiene policy that we review on each employee’s first day. Must be clean, wear deodorant, not smell of smoke, and not wear scented products. I would have a talk with him. He is probably unaware that his fellow employees can smell it. I would express that certain scents can be offensive to some people. Honestly, I would rather have the pot smell talk any day. The hard talk is when an employee doesn’t wear deodorant or doesn’t shower routinely.

Maisie F.
SHERWOOD, OR

Don’t count on the result being similar to your previous summer’s part-time B.O. employee. Weed smell is always controllable, body odor isn’t. Personal anecdote: Half of the time I can’t even tell that I smell like weed when I do. Regular smokers of any substance experience this nose-blindness. Let him know you’ve been smelling weed in the hallway, avoid accusatory terms, but remind him about the substance policy. If his locker smells like pot, there’s pot in it. Residual smoke on its own is unlikely to stink up an entire hallway. Certainly amend your employee handbook to help prevent this issue in the future!

Rebecca N.
DOVER, DE

This has happened to me! When I was managing a dog daycare/boarding facility, a new hire began coming in smelling heavily of pot after their first week. I simply sat down with them and kindly let them know that we did not have a policy against use on personal time, but reminded them of our drug/tobacco policy on premises. After reviewing the policy with them, we simply stated, “You’re free to do what you like on your personal time, but since you work so closely with the dogs/owners, we need you to understand that coming into work with the smell of marijuana is not OK. The scent could end up on someone’s dog if you’re spending time with them that day, and some people still see marijuana as a serious drug. Moving forward, maybe you could try changing into your uniform at work?” I feel like people are just afraid to have direct conversations with employees because they think it will cause conflict, when in reality, it often creates a relationship of respect and honesty.

Diane B.
MORRIS, MN

Common sense says that the customer comes first and foremost! Jane is right, the pets cannot go home smelling like marijuana. What to do? I fired my dog groomer for the same reason! He actually would smoke pot and even drank tequila or wine while grooming dogs — he snuck it in. It was after I had two complaints within two weeks of the shoddy job he was doing that I told him we were done! Stick to your guns! This is your business! Don’t compromise it by allowing things to slide. That groomer came back about six weeks later, asking for his job back. I held my ground and denied him.

Paul L.
MOUNT DORA, FL

Jane would need to change the policies to reflect her new policy regarding personal odor. Maybe create a new section of the handbook outlining what the company expects. Bob should not have anything to worry about if he did not partake on premise and does not appear to be under the influence. We once had an employee who smelled of cat urine every day. All of the employees would complain if he would get near them. Finally, we had to confront the employee regarding his scent. He said his cat urinated all over his clothes due to his girlfriend moving into the apartment. He was trying to wash the smells out, he stated.

AJ E.
ALLENTOWN, PA

We’ve had a similar incident in the past. After addressing the one-off circumstance, we updated our dress code to prohibit excessive/unprofessional odors, scents and perfumes that are not conducive to a professional presentation. It’s been helpful because now our managers have a specific policy they can reference when addressing this issue.

April M.
CRESTVIEW, FL

I would initiate a policy for all employees to sign regarding cleanliness standards on the job. I would present it in a group forum and explain your reasoning for why they must adhere to the standards. All employees should understand your points, and be mindful of your reputation as a community business and how you and they are viewed and scrutinized by the public. We all know how social media can play a huge part in the make-or-break of a business if it got out that the consumer didn’t feel the employees were clean or had poor odor while taking care of their pets. Make sure to end on a positive note.

Matt B.
GOLETA, CA

Bob, do you know where I could score a bag of that good herb you’re smoking? Actually, that’s not what I would say to Bob. I’d tell him I have smelled marijuana on his person, thereby removing any employees from his thinking about who may have tattled. I’d tell him I am fine with employees using marijuana, after hours. If they are using it beforehand, I do not want to know, and it is pretty easy to read when someone is doing that — they reek. I would couch it like this: Some of my customers would not appreciate this, and they come first, no matter how uptight; I don’t need someone giving me reviews that aren’t positive. I don’t want anyone complaining to me about someone reeking of marijuana. Truth be told, the odor does not stick around long unless it’s on someone’s breath.

Brett F.
OWEGO, NY

Jane needs to make it clear that smelling like marijuana or alcohol is not permitted. She may need to implement a hygiene policy. You don’t want to give the impression that your staff is using it on the job, and that’s exactly what the odor can create. Make it clear that she doesn’t care what he does in his free time, but that he needs to make sure he’s not bringing that odor to work.

Laura M.
DECATUR, GA

I always tell people that I do not have a problem at all with them smoking pot, and we do not do drug testing, but we work with people’s pets, so it needs to be done off the property and after work. You have to be fully present with the pups. The smell is really only strong if someone smokes in their car on their way into work or right before coming to work. So, that has solved that problem for me. I do not smoke, but I think the key is that I do not want them to feel like I am judging or even disciplining them. I just want them to know the why and feel comfortable with it.