In a ruling on Tuesday, the Supreme Court has upheld a company?s "no-rehire policy" for recovered drug addicts or alcoholics who were dismissed for violating the company's workplace rules. Although the ruling will allow employers discretion in the hiring of former employees whose drug abuse created problems at work, it does not address the issue of whether former drug addicts and alcoholics are entitled to equal treatment when they apply for a job with a new employer. Under the Americans With Disabilities Act of 1990 people who are no longer abusing drugs and who have underwent rehabilitation cannot be discriminated against based on their past behavior.
See "High Court Upholds Firm's Rehiring Ban", David G. Savage, Los Angeles Times, December 2, 2003