Cannabis can provide relief, whether medicinal or recreational, to those who choose to partake. What is less relaxing, however, is running the business side of an industry that makes it possible for consumers to chill out. Unique concerns exist for employers whose retail workers, growers, and producers could be – and are being – solicited for third-party representation. Oh yes, plenty of interested unions wait in the wings. 

On an upcoming episode of The Left Of Boom Show, we invited some in-house guests – LRI chief-of-staff Danine Clay and labor consultant Amber Glesener – to candidly discuss their experiences with workers in the cannabis industry. They will address labor-specific wrinkles within an industry that faces many challenging issues:

• Federally, this industry is not legal but must follow federal labor law.

• Rapidly changing laws across state lines adds further complications. This includes states that require or encourage companies to adopt a neutral stance through so-called Labor Peace Agreements during organizing campaigns. 

• Cannabis workers fall into both the retail and agricultural sectors, which present different potential workplace concerns.

• Taxation of this industry has reached a nearly prohibitive level, leaving little financial wiggle room. Therefore, losing a union election could tip the balance from profitable to unsustainable.

• Cannabis is not only an attractive union target but also a testing ground for the Cemex framework which makes it easier for workers to unionize.  

A game-changing prospect for this industry compounds these daunting realities: reclassification.

This week, the Biden administration submitted a proposed rule to the Federal Register to shift marijuana from a Schedule I drug to a far less dangerous category, Schedule III. This wouldn’t precisely legalize cannabis, and there’s no guarantee that this rule would survive the 60-day comment period and lengthy approval process. If the rule goes into effect, some existing restrictions on the industry could go poof. This could further grow the industry, making it more lucrative and a bigger union target. 

In our new podcast episode, Danine and Amber address these issues and more concerns about this rapidly evolving industry. Their invaluable perspective on cannabis workers’ concerns and how unions operate in this space makes for a heck of a podcast episode. They also identify future trends for this industry and share their observations for the benefit of companies hoping to stave off union activity. They know how to address labor issues and nip them in the bud proactively.

Before we close and hand this subject over to Danine and Amber, here are a few recent developments in this industry:

• Curaleaf workers want a decertification vote at an Illinois dispensary. 

• Wyld cannabis gummies workers rejected the UFCW in an election at a manufacturing plant. However, the NLRB is considering a claim that a union activist was illegally fired, which could lead to the board overturning the election and forcing Wyld into union bargaining via Cemex. The NLRB also recently ruled that an INSA cannabis dispensary in Boston must bargain with a union that lost an election.

• Eaze Cannabis averted a strike at 11 California locations represented by the UFCW.

• Workers at a Massachusetts-based cannabis cultivation facility voted to decertify the UFCW. Mere weeks after their decision to oust the union, these workers already received raises and stock options. 

The future of this industry is wide open, so please join us in discussing what is to come.