A man suffering from sinus cancer and an inoperable brain tumor is doing what he can to support himself. Joseph Casias uses medical marijuana to manage the pain and other symptoms associated with his illness. The 29 year old was recently fired from his long term job as a Wal-Mart associate because of his medical marijuana use.

The young man says he never went to work under the influence nor did he smoke the marijuana while on duty. After five years of employment, he was unexpectedly fired after a drug test revealed the marijuana in his system. The manager of the Wal-Mart store apologized to Casias but said the rules could not be bent, even in a legal use situation.

Wal-Mart spokesperson Greg Rossiter calls the situation “unfortunate” but states, they will not rehire the former associate of the year. Although medical marijuana is legal in fourteen states, there are no laws to protect users from job termination in drug-free companies.

Wal-Mart is just one of many companies that forbid drug use of any kind. Marijuana is still an illegal drug according to federal law. This makes a company liable if any injury occurs on the property at the hands of a medical marijuana user.