Employees Flee Union at Major Cannabis Company Amid Wage and Dues Dispute
In a shocking turn of events, employees at one of the nation’s leading cannabis companies have reportedly left their union amidst a heated disagreement over wages and dues. According to MJBizDaily, workers at Cresco Labs’ cannabis cultivation facility in Massachusetts voted to de-unionize earlier this month, marking the first instance in the U.S. of a regulated cannabis workplace exiting organized labor.
The Fall River, Massachusetts facility had joined the United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW) Local 328 in November 2020, but their first contract was set to expire in June. However, instead of negotiating a new deal, the workers chose to completely ditch the UFCW, as employee Wyatt Brissette revealed to MJBizDaily on Tuesday. Brissette cited issues such as scheduled wage increases that didn’t keep up with inflation and “arguably worse benefits” than nonunion workers as reasons for the split.
“We felt as if the union didn’t match what we needed,” Brissette explained. “We were pretty much paying them for nothing.”
Another outlet, The Dales Report, reported that the decision to leave the union was driven by employee dissatisfaction with union dues.
This situation at Cresco Labs highlights a major challenge in unionized industries, particularly in emerging markets like cannabis. While unions are often seen as a means of protecting workers’ rights and ensuring fair treatment, this recent event reveals a disconnect between union efforts and member expectations. It sheds light on the complexities of union dynamics in newer, rapidly changing markets.
As one of the largest publicly traded, vertically integrated, multistate cannabis companies in the U.S., according to its official website, Cresco Labs’ stock was trading at below $2 a share on Wednesday, although it is up more than 46 percent year-to-date. Last year, the company called off a planned $2 billion merger with Columbia Care, a deal that would have created the largest cannabis company in the United States.
With this latest development, it is clear that the impact of the Cresco Labs union departure could have far-reaching effects on union strategies and employee relations in similar companies. It may even prompt a reassessment of union strategies across the industry, as unions may need to adapt more flexibly to the unique challenges and expectations of workers in non-traditional fields like cannabis cultivation. For Cresco Labs, this change could also lead to updates in their human resource policies and employee engagement strategies to directly address worker concerns without the need for union mediation.
