Does Right to Bear Arms Include Work?
By George Anderson
Ronald Honeycutt knows that there’s more than one way to lose a job.
According to USA Today, the former Pizza Hut delivery person found himself confronted by a man with a gun one evening while making deliveries. Mr. Honeycutt did what he
thought was best to save his life and, by extension, his job in the process. He shot and killed the man.
Unfortunately for Mr. Honeycutt, while he was fortunate to save his own life and his company’s money, he lost his job. Pizza Hut has a company rule against carrying weapons.
Mr. Honeycutt has found another job delivering pizzas for a different company but he disagrees with Pizza Hut’s decision to let him go. “It’s not fair,” he said. “There is a
constitutional right to bear arms. If I’m going to die, I’d rather be killed defending myself.”
Many legislators agree with Mr. Honeycutt and some states have passed laws making it easier for registered gun owners to carry weapons while on the job, even if their employer
has a policy against it.
Paul Viollis, president of Risk Control Strategies in New York spoke to USA Today. “Are we promoting open firefights in the parking lot? For legislation to permit employees
and contractors to bring loaded firearms to work in vehicles is blatantly irresponsible.”
Moderator’s Comment: Should retail companies amend their weapons policies to allow workers in high-risk jobs (convenience stores, dollar stores, etc.)
to carry a gun or other form of protection?
Oklahoma state Sen. Frank Shurden, a Democrat, thinks they should. “Companies are prohibiting the rights of employees to protect themselves. I am in favor
of letting a licensed permit holder carry the gun in the workplace. There’s no reason to fear law-abiding citizens.” –
George Anderson – Moderator
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2 Comments on "Does Right to Bear Arms Include Work?"
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Actually, depending on your state of residence… If you check out your laws, you will most likely find that only the state you reside in has jurisdiction over whether or not you can carry. No private institution or land owner, etc… can deny your right to carry if you are a legal CCW holder. Granted, it’s always a good idea to keep it concealed and not to let anybody know about it. In my state (NH), no institution except for the state itself (and federal of course) can do anything to infringe on my right to carry, so I do. New Hampshire is also an at-will employment state so I could get fired if found out; they just couldn’t use their weapons policy as an acceptable reason. Either way, I’d rather lose my job than my life. My job is replaceable. My life isn’t.