Posts tagged cannabis workers
Cannabis Workers Send UFCW Union Packing at Holistic Industries Monson Facility
February 25, 2026 // Packaging associates and delivery drivers at cannabis company Holistic Industries’ Monson plant have successfully removed United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW) union officials from their workplace. The victory comes after a majority of Holistic employees backed a petition asking the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) to administer a vote to remove the UFCW union from the facility (also known as a union “decertification” vote). Scott Browne, a Holistic packaging associate, submitted the petition with free legal aid from National Right to Work Foundation staff attorneys.
WA farmworker union bill doesn’t make it through Legislature
February 22, 2026 // Tuesday, Feb. 17, was the cutoff for bills to be voted out of the chamber — the Senate or House of Representatives — where they originated. The bill introduced by state Sen. Rebecca Saldana, D-Seattle, would have given farmworkers a legal framework to engage in collective bargaining with their employers. The bill made it through the first round of Senate committees but not to a floor vote that would have advanced it.
Right to Work Foundation Urges Ninth Circuit to Reject CA Law Granting Union Bosses Massive Power Over Cannabis Industry Workers
October 9, 2025 // The Foundation’s amicus brief argues in particular that the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA) preempts California’s “labor peace agreement” statutes. The NLRA is the federal law that governs most private sector labor relations. The four conditions mandated for cannabis companies under California law, “an agreement with a…union, a ban on disrupting union organizing, a ban on union members picketing, boycotting, or striking, and a clause granting union organizers access to employees at work” all concern activity that the U.S. Congress intended the NLRA to deal with – not state law.
Does federal marijuana prohibition mean cannabis workers can’t unionize?
September 19, 2025 // That’s what so-called “trigger laws” in California, New York and Massachusetts call for: allowing workers to petition state labor-relations entities if the NLRB cannot function. That could work against cannabis companies in such blue states. In contrast, it would be a boon for anti-unionization efforts in states with weak labor laws such as Missouri, where the cannabis industry is doing comparatively well compared to other states. It’s not clear what might happen next in Michigan, where Democratic lawmakers repealed anti-union “right-to-work” laws in 2024.
Cannabis workers strike to form union in Ann Arbor
September 4, 2025 // UFCW says an Exclusive Brands worker who was recently fired had been supporting the unionization effort and also claims the company tried to block a union election. UFCW filed a complaint with the state cannabis agency and an unfair labor practice charge with the National Labor Relations Board in late August. An Exclusive Brands spokesperson declined to comment to Axios. The Livonia-based retailer and grower has seven dispensaries in Michigan.
Teamsters: South Jersey cannabis workers unionizing in Mays Landing
May 7, 2025 // Teamsters set out about three years ago to unionize the cannabis industries. It has recorded more than 30 collective bargaining agreements among workforces in California, Illinois, Ohio, Maryland, Massachusetts and Michigan. “This is inherently a core industry for our union,” union spokesman Matt McQuaid said this week. “If you look at most of the core segments of the cannabis supply chain — agriculture, manufacturing, logistics, and retail — these are all jobs where the Teamsters have represented workers for decades.”
Oregon Voters to Consider Ballot Proposal Allowing Cannabis Industry Workers to Unionize
August 9, 2024 // Oregon voters will decide this November whether workers in the state’s struggling cannabis industry should be allowed to unionize, Willamette Week reports. The ballot initiative, Measure 119, was organized by the United Food & Commercial Workers (UFCW) labor union after state lawmakers this year considered but ultimately failed to adopt the reforms. The legislation died in the House Business and Labor Committee — Rep. Paul Holvey (D), who chairs the committee, said that he let the bill die because the reforms would likely violate federal law.
Some Cannabis Employees Are Voting Out Their Union
July 18, 2024 // Decertification in the cannabis space can be seen as a sign that the industry has matured and is following trends in other sectors. It could also indicate that unions overpromised what they could get. As the industry matures and companies offer better wages, benefits, and working conditions, some employees have decided they don’t need a union.
A measure to help Oregon cannabis workers unionize is headed to November ballot, labor group says
July 11, 2024 // When a bill to enact a very similar law failed in the 2023 legislative session, UFCW announced it would attempt to recall state Rep. Paul Holvey, D-Eugene. Union leaders accused Holvey, who chaired an influential committee, of tanking the bill’s chance of passing. Holvey, often seen as a staunch supporter of unions, has said he was concerned the idea would violate federal labor law, and that he offered UFCW opportunities to make changes. The union spent more than $300,000 on a recall campaign that was defeated overwhelmingly by voters in Holvey’s Eugene district last October. Holvey has since announced he will retire when his term expires in early 2025. In the meantime, UFCW was taking steps to put its idea directly before voters. According to campaign finance records, the union has spent more than $2 million on a statewide signature gathering campaign.