NYC MM Hedge Fund Drug Test

Hi all!

I am joining a MM hedge fund based in NYC soon and have been informed I will have a drug test, I presume in the next coming weeks. I have been smoking weed a fair amount, so anticipate waiting a while before doing the drug test, which should be okay with respect to timelines.

However, I know that NYC employers are not permitted to test for THC prior to employment (other than some exceptions). On top of this, Cuomo legalized in NY this morning with the new york times saying new yorkers are legally able to smoke up in the street of NYC as of today.

My question is:

  1. Will I be tested for THC?, ie is a MM HF perhaps one of the exceptions to the testing pre-employment? I'm inclined to think no as it doesn't explicitly fall under the list of types of employers that are exempt. So I have no concern?

Additionally:

2.  Does Cuomo's signing today render THC not an 'illegal substance' (the phrasing used in my contract), meaning that this is now all moot, and as if it were on par with alchohol? So again I have no concern?

Please let me know thoughts, much appreciated to all!

23 Comments
 

Wow I never thought of that, that's hugely insightful I appreciate it.

Just looking to eliminate concerns immediately if these concerns are unnecessary.

Thanks for your thoughts!

 

It’s 30 days to be exact. Prepare accordingly.

"If you always put limits on everything you do, physical or anything else, it will spread into your work and into your life. There are no limits. There are only plateaus, and you must not stay there, you must go beyond them." - Bruce Lee
 

Do you know if they're doing a piss test or is it something more prying like a hair test? 

If it's a hair test I don't think there's any way around it that I'm familiar with I would just submit it and not say anything to anyone. My guess is that they're going to be more concerned that you're not addicted to stimulants or other controlled substances. 

If it's a piss test and you're that worried about it just buy a kit and make the fake piss substance. I know a ton of people in tech that would do this and it's really not that hard to execute. You're sent into a separate room to pee it's not like they're watching you. 

 

Pizz

Why do you do drugs in the first place? You're going to live a shorter life 

THC probably extends life

"If you always put limits on everything you do, physical or anything else, it will spread into your work and into your life. There are no limits. There are only plateaus, and you must not stay there, you must go beyond them." - Bruce Lee
 

-

"If you always put limits on everything you do, physical or anything else, it will spread into your work and into your life. There are no limits. There are only plateaus, and you must not stay there, you must go beyond them." - Bruce Lee
 
Most Helpful

So, to move past the shitty answers so far, marijuana is 100% an illegal substance under federal law, so Cuomo’s signature does absolutely nothing to mitigate your contractual terms.

With that being said, in NY you can’t require a THC test as a condition of employment. I don’t think any of the carveouts could realistically be interpreted to include hedge funds (some junior attorney’s ears just perked up somewhere... and technically the state can expand the list) but interestingly they could still require you to submit to a test once you’ve started work; the ban is only on pre-employment testing, not current employee testing.

I’m not sure if new tests have been developed to meet NY regulations, but the standard pre-employment test is a 5-panel that includes THC, so I could see a world where they don’t “require” you to take one with THC but won’t pay for each panel individually.

If I had to guess you’re probably fine, but I’d still mitigate the risk and hold off... you’ll have plenty of opportunity to blaze once you have the job

 

Every big swinging dick in finance started their career out trying to pass a drug test. Michael Milken, Ray Dalio, John Gray, etc. etc. All huge blaze bros who loved blazing and ordering dominos on the weekends. If you get caught, fuck it. You were just following in the footsteps of the all-time greats

Anyone who doesn’t blaze multiple times a week is probably a fricken nerd anyway

 

lol when you think about nobody who means shit being a blaze bro makes you question whether you will ever mean shit if you are a blaze bro, or if you should stop being a blaze bro. OP do you want to ever mean shit or do you want to be a blaze bro?

 

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