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New law changes rules for employee handgun possession
SHERRY KARABIN
Legal News Reporter
Published: April 5, 2017
Labor and employment attorneys are urging business and property owners to review their employee handgun policies to ensure they comply with a new law expanding the rights of those who have concealed carry licenses.
Gov. John Kasich signed Amended Substitute Senate Bill 199 last December, which allows concealed carry licensees and certain others to bring their firearms with them in more places.
The law went into effect on March 21 and attorneys said employers and others who have not done so must update their policies.
Martin Boetcher, a member at Harrington, Hoppe & Mitchell, said the new rules mean public and private employers in Ohio can no longer keep employees with concealed carry licenses from transporting and storing handguns or ammunition in their own personal vehicles while parked on company property.
“Many businesses have policies that prohibit all employees from having weapons or ammunition in cars that are parked in employer lots,” said Boetcher, who focuses on employment and workers’ compensation law as well as civil litigation. “They will no longer be able to have or enforce such a company policy or rule.
“They can still forbid weapons and ammunition from being allowed in company vehicles or from being brought into the building.”
Ohio Revised Code §2923.1210 states that “A business entity, property owner, or public or private employer may not establish, maintain, or enforce a policy or rule that prohibits or has the effect of prohibiting a person who has been issued a valid concealed handgun license from transporting or storing a firearm or ammunition when both of the following conditions are met:
“(1) Each firearm and all of the ammunition remains inside the person’s privately owned motor vehicle while the person is physically present inside the motor vehicle, or each firearm and all of the ammunition is locked within the trunk, glove box, or other enclosed compartment or container within or on the person’s privately owned motor vehicle.
“(2) The vehicle is in a location where it is otherwise permitted to be.”
Melissa Dials, of counsel at the management-side labor and employment law firm Fisher Phillips, said a permitted location would include a company parking lot.
Dials said while the bill does provide business entities, property owners and employers with immunity in a civil action for any injuries, damages or deaths that might result from storing or transporting the handgun or ammunition under the new law, “it will not stop employees from filing workers’ compensation claims for any injuries suffered as a result.”
The new law also expands the rights of active duty members of the U.S. Armed Forces, allowing them to carry a concealed handgun without a license as long as they have valid military identification and documentation that they have successfully completed firearms training that meets or exceeds Ohio concealed carry law training requirements. In addition, active duty military members can be sold or furnished a handgun if they have received such training.
“The law allows concealed carry license holders to bring handguns into school safety zones if the handgun is locked in a motor vehicle,” said Dials, who works out of the Cleveland office. “In general, license holders may also bring handguns into non-secure areas of airports but may not bring them beyond screening checkpoints.
“The law allows public and private colleges and universities to exercise discretion as to whether they permit concealed carry on campus, although such institutions are still required to allow license holders to transport and store firearms in locked motor vehicles,” Dials said.
Boetcher said while the new law is a “win” for those with concealed carry licenses, employers have raised concerns about the increased potential for violence on their property.
“For example, if a disgruntled employee is let go and has access to a weapon because of the new law, it could increase the likelihood of an incident,” said Boetcher.
Dials said she too has heard complaints from employers.
“Some employers believe the new law restricts their rights to regulate the presence of weapons on their property,” said Dials. “Under OSHA (Occupational Safety and Health Administration) employers have a duty to provide employees with a safe working environment.”
Still she said the law that passed did eliminate several controversial proposals that were contained in the original bill.
“One proposal would have created a protected class for concealed carry permit holders that would have been subject to anti-discrimination laws,” she said.
Dials said she’s advised employers to either revise their existing policies to incorporate the specifics of the new law or simply amend them to read that firearms and ammunition are prohibited everywhere unless otherwise allowed by law.
“Businesses are hesitant to announce that there are firearms in their parking lots,” Dials said.
“It’s also unclear whether a business owner can request to see an employee’s license or inspect the person’s car to make sure the weapon and ammunition are properly stored.”
Boetcher said what is clear is that private and public employers cannot discharge an employee with a concealed carry license for having a firearm or ammunition in a personal vehicle that’s parked in a company lot as long as the worker is following the law, including the rules pertaining to proper storage.
“Any such discharge or disciplinary action could result in a lawsuit,” he said.