by Leanne Mehrman and Chelsey McDade
Georgia’s newest gun law, the Safe Carry Protection Act of 2014, goes into effect on July 1 and greatly expands the list of places where licensed gun owners may legally carry their weapons to include schools, government buildings, churches, and bars. Employers, however, can take advantage of certain limits in the law.
Although the law is known as the “guns everywhere” law, employers should be aware of the law’s limits and consider how it affects personnel policies and workplace safety.
Under the new law, Georgia employers may continue to prohibit the possession of firearms on their property as long as they own the property or have legal control of it. According to the new law, “Private property owners or persons in legal control of private property through a lease, rental agreement, licensing agreement, contract, or any other agreement to control access to such private property shall have the right to exclude or eject a person who is in possession of a weapon or long gun on their private property.” This line says I can't!
The new law doesn’t significantly alter Georgia’s 2008 gun law allowing firearms in employers’ parking lots. Under Georgia’s Business Security and Employee Privacy Act of 2008 (better known as the “bring your gun to work” law), employees may lawfully bring concealed weapons onto an employer’s property as long as they possess a valid Georgia firearms license and store the weapons out of sight in a locked trunk or glove compartment in a vehicle. This line says I can?
The 2008 law prohibits employers from establishing, maintaining, or enforcing any policy or rule that allows them to search employees’ or invited guests’ private vehicles on company property. This line just says they aren't allowed to look?
Both the 2008 law and the new law allow employers that own or are in legal control of employee parking lots to restrict access to the lots. Such employers may enforce policies prohibiting the presence of firearms on company property. That exception sharply contrasts with similar laws in several other states that provide a blanket prohibition on employer policies restricting the possession of firearms on company property. This line says I can't!