{"id":56117,"date":"2022-07-26T05:40:27","date_gmt":"2022-07-26T13:40:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/2022\/07\/26\/federal-labor-officials-field-complaints-about-large-marijuana-businesses-resistance-to-worker-unions\/"},"modified":"2022-07-26T08:45:29","modified_gmt":"2022-07-26T16:45:29","slug":"federal-labor-officials-field-complaints-about-large-marijuana-businesses-resistance-to-worker-unions","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/2022\/07\/26\/federal-labor-officials-field-complaints-about-large-marijuana-businesses-resistance-to-worker-unions\/","title":{"rendered":"Federal Labor Officials Field Complaints About Large Marijuana Businesses\u2019 Resistance To Worker Unions"},"content":{"rendered":"<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is a part of a movement that\u2019s really been in the works for some time, but now has a lot of momentum.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

By David Abbott, Arizona Mirror<\/strong><\/p>\n

Unionization for workers in the cannabis industry is gathering steam in Arizona, as budtenders at the Curaleaf Dispensary in midtown Phoenix recently voted to unionize, while workers at several other dispensaries are poised to vote on the issue within the next few weeks.<\/p>\n

\u201c[This] election marks an important milestone for cannabis workers in Arizona and across the country,\u201d United Food and Commercial Workers Union Local 99 President Jim McLaughlin said in a July 2 press release. \u201cAs cannabis companies like Curaleaf continue to see record profits, the time to share their prosperity with workers is long overdue.\u201d<\/p>\n

UFCW 99 is Arizona\u2019s largest private-sector union, representing 24,000 workers at Fry\u2019s, Safeway and other retailers throughout the southwest. There are more than 1.3 million UFCW members nationwide.<\/p>\n

Massachusetts-based Curaleaf is one of the world\u2019s largest cannabis companies by revenue, operating more than 100 dispensaries in 22 states across the U.S., including eight in Arizona.<\/p>\n

Employees at Curaleaf\u2019s dispensary on Central Avenue, just north of Thomas Road, voted 13-6 on June 30 to join UFCW, making them the first cannabis workers in the state to unionize.<\/p>\n

The move to unionize commercial cannabis operations is part of the UFCW\u2019s efforts, known as the Cannabis Workers Rising movement, which began in 2010 when medical cannabis was first legalized in Arizona. The UFCW is working with other Curaleaf locations in the Phoenix area, as well as employees at dispensaries owned by Verano Holdings Corp., a Chicago-based company that operates in 14 states.<\/p>\n

According to UFCW spokesperson Drake Ridge, employees at Curaleaf\u2019s Camelback Road dispensary reached out to the UFCW in February and will submit their ballots on July 28. And employees at Zen Leaf in Chandler, owned by Verano Holdings Corp., have their ballots and will cast them by July 19.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is something we\u2019ve been working on, both locally and at the international level, for some time now,\u201d Ridge said. \u201cThis is a part of a movement that\u2019s really been in the works for some time, but now has a lot of momentum.\u201d<\/p>\n

Curaleaf has allegedly worked to block unionization in its dispensaries, and the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) has received numerous complaints<\/a> about the company from cannabis outlets throughout the country.<\/p>\n

Curaleaf said it could not comment on the unionization efforts. Verano Holdings did not return a request for comment.<\/p>\n

Ongoing legal actions are delaying a unionization vote at Absolute Healthcare in Gilbert. Likewise, an employee at the Chandler Zen Leaf dispensary, known as Territory before Verano Holdings purchased it, filed a complaint<\/a> in January alleging \u201ccoercive statements (threats, promises of benefits, etc),\u201d as well as retaliation against employees attempting to unionize.<\/p>\n

Ridge said that much of the desire for change among dispensary employees is because the cannabis conglomerates have come into the state by purchasing locally owned operations and immediately creating a corporate structure that is not responsive to employee concerns.<\/p>\n

Many of these operations bring in $1 million to $2 million each month, according to Ridge.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen Zen Leaf Chandler was still Territory, a lot of the workers were employed there when it was still a mom and pop, and they remember what it was like to have that close relationship with management,\u201d he said. \u201cAll across the board, the issues that [workers have] seen are pretty much the same: These large corporations come in, they\u2019ll implement new policies without much discussion, and workers are seeing an instant decrease in their bottom line.\u201d<\/p>\n

One huge change for Zen Leaf and Curaleaf workers is what happens with tips from customers. Instead of allowing budtenders to continue to keep all of their tips, the new corporate owners implemented policies requiring all tips be pooled and split among all employees\u2014including management.<\/p>\n

\u201cAt Zen Leaf and Curaleaf locations that have organized, every single worker has complained about the new tip policies in place,\u201d Ridge said. \u201cIn some cases, it has cut their take home pay by 40 percent.\u201d<\/p>\n

Gino, a Zen Leaf budtender who led efforts to unionize the shop, was fired along with six other employees after Verano changed its tip policy and unionizing efforts began.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf your company is making $1.2 million to almost $2 million in good months, every month, then employees shouldn\u2019t be making $15 an hour,\u201d he stated. \u201cIf you\u2019re making hand-over-fist amounts of money, you can afford to pay your employees fairly. We\u2019re just simply asking to be paid fairly.\u201d<\/p>\n

One former Curaleaf employee says she was fired in 2020 for trying to unionize her workplace. Curaleaf fired Anissa Keane, who had worked in its Gilbert location for three years\u2014including prior to Curaleaf purchasing the dispensary\u2014in August 2020. In 2021, Keane, with the support of the UFCW, filed a lawsuit<\/a> alleging her firing was retaliation for her organizing activities. Curaleaf says it fired her because she was a subpar employee.<\/p>\n

Keane has recently been reinstated<\/a> to her job and will start soon, after an injunction against Curaleaf was lifted, but the status of a potential vote is still unclear. (The UFCW is currently working to get back pay for Keane.)<\/p>\n

\u201cHaving Curaleaf reinstate my job really has shown me that, though this has been a long fight, it\u2019s a fight worth having,\u201d Keane told the Arizona Mirror in an email. \u201cI believe strongly in unions, and will continue to fight, not just for myself but for all Curaleaf employees.\u201d<\/p>\n

Curaleaf did not respond to the Mirror\u2019s questions.<\/p>\n

As more Arizona dispensaries seek representation in an industry that sold almost $1.5 billion in product in 2021<\/a>, and unionization is taking hold across the U.S., the UFCW says it is laying the groundwork for a possible expansion of the industry should the federal government eventually legalize marijuana nationally. That would allow cannabis workers the opportunity to share in profits that are projected to keep growing as the markets mature.<\/p>\n

\u201cA lot of these budtenders, they\u2019re young, they have their whole careers ahead of them,\u201d Ridge said. \u201cThey want to be able to go to work, put in their time and know that, in \u2018X\u2019 amount of years, they\u2019ll be eligible to get a promotion or get a bigger pay raise. That\u2019s something that a good union contract will provide.\u201d<\/p>\n

The workers at Curaleaf\u2019s midtown location are going to get a chance to see that dynamic in motion, as they head into negotiations within the next few months.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is really going to lay the groundwork for workers across the country,\u201d Ridge concluded. \u201cThis is part of a movement across the country that has really gained substantial momentum and will only stand to benefit the workers as they continue to fight for fair and equitable workplaces and dignity on the job.\u201d<\/p>\n

Curaleaf has filed an objection<\/a> to the NLRB, taking issue with the use of mail-in ballots for the unionization vote. The company claims there was insufficient notice of the switch to mail-in voting.<\/p>\n

A recent report<\/a> by Headset, a data analysis company specializing in trends in the cannabis industry, found very high turnover in the cannabis industry.<\/p>\n

About 55 percent of budtenders leave the industry any given year, with about 25 percent turnover in the first 30 days of employment. Most budtenders do not last a year with a single employer, the company found.<\/p>\n

Retailers in Illinois tend to have the best employee retention, about 29 percent stay on long-term, while those in Colorado and Oregon tend to have the highest rates of turnover with a 12 percent retention rate. Budtender retention in Arizona is only slightly better at 15 percent.<\/p>\n

According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, in 2021 employee turnover was 47.2 percent across all industries.<\/p>\n

This story was first published by Arizona Mirror.<\/em><\/a><\/p>\n

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The post Federal Labor Officials Field Complaints About Large Marijuana Businesses\u2019 Resistance To Worker Unions<\/a> appeared first on Marijuana Moment<\/a>.<\/p>\n


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\nRead More: Federal Labor Officials Field Complaints About Large Marijuana Businesses\u2019 Resistance To Worker Unions<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

\u201cThis is a part of a movement that\u2019s really been in the works for some time, but now has a lot of momentum.\u201d By David Abbott, Arizona Mirror Unionization for workers in the cannabis industry is gathering steam in Arizona, as budtenders at the Curaleaf Dispensary in midtown Phoenix recentlyContinue Reading<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":457,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"false","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[1335],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/56117"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/457"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=56117"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/56117\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":56118,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/56117\/revisions\/56118"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=56117"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=56117"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=56117"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}