In November 2019, United Food and Commercial Workers International Union (UFCW) became the first union to organize employees at a Massachusetts cannabis company. According to the Boston Globe, two-thirds of Sira Naturals, Inc.’s employees, who work at its cultivation and manufacturing facility and its dispensaries, voted to join UFCW. Sira issued its own announcement indicating that in advance of the vote it entered a labor peace agreement with UFCW allowing union representatives to come onsite and talk with employees about unionizing. Now that Sira’s workforce is unionized, it will negotiate a collective bargaining agreement with UFCW that will cover the workers’ terms and conditions of employment.
UFCW says that is currently represents tens of thousands of cannabis workers across the country, and it has a dedicated campaign to build its presence wherever cannabis is legal. Based on its recent win at Sira, other Massachusetts cannabis businesses can expect to hear from UFCW about similar access to their workers. They can also expect UFCW to reach out to their workers directly about joining its ranks.
