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An Oregon ballot measure will ask voters this November to decide whether to make it easier for cannabis workers to unionize.
Under Ballot Measure 119, the United for Cannabis Workers Act, cannabis retail and processing employers must enter into a labor peace agreement with their union to obtain a license from the Oregon Liquor and Cannabis Commission. ” must be signed. Under the agreement, employers must agree not to interfere with organizing efforts if employees choose to form a union.
As of early September, there was no organized opposition to the bill, although business lobbying groups opposed a similar bill that died in the Oregon Legislature last year.
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File photo of cannabis in a recreational dispensary.
Alain Silvestre / OPB
Miles Eshire, a spokesman for United Food and Commercial Workers Local 555, Oregon's largest private labor union, said cannabis workers are often denied the right to form a union because of vague federal laws. He said he is doing so.
“This should have been announced when Oregon passed legalization for recreational use,” Eshire said.
UFCW 555 has been pushing for this measure to become law. Earlier this summer, the union spent more than $2 million on signature drives to qualify for the ballot.
Eshire said some cannabis employees work in growing, harvesting and processing cannabis without wearing proper protective equipment, potentially exposing them to chemicals. He said some workers have had to deal with dangerous working conditions. But when workers speak out, they sometimes face intimidation and the threat of losing their jobs.
“We want to make sure that our workers have a safe working environment,” Eshaia said. “We don't want them to be exposed to toxic chemicals if they don't have to. We want them to negotiate their own safety and working conditions, because that's fair.”
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According to the Oregon Employment Department, the most recent data shows there are 7,281 workers in the cannabis sector, with the majority working in the retail, transportation and warehousing side of the industry.
If passed, Bill 119 would likely give most workers in the industry the right to form a union, unless the workers are classified only as agricultural workers. Under the National Labor Relations Act, agricultural workers are not protected and are not allowed to form unions.
Similar laws have already been enacted in states such as California, New York and New Jersey.
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This is not the first time UFCW 555 has attempted to pass similar legislation to protect cannabis workers. The union also pushed for this policy in the form of House Bill 3183 during the 2023 state legislative session, but the bill died. At the time, some lawmakers were concerned that the bill would violate the Constitution.
Organizations such as the lobbying group Oregon Business and Industry (OBI) opposed the bill, saying it would require employers to “waive rights protected by federal law.”
At this time, OBI has not publicly opposed Measure 119. OBI spokesperson Eric Lukens told OPB in an email that the organization would not speculate on possible litigation. Lukens said if the bill passes, he will sit down with members and consider possible actions at the appropriate time.
UFCW Local 555 President Dan Clay is preparing to submit his signature box to state election officials on July 5, 2024. Bill 119, the Cannabis Workers Alliance Act, is scheduled to appear on Oregon's ballot this November.
Provided by: UFCW Local 555
The Oregon Cannabis Industry Alliance, an advocacy and lobbying group for cannabis retailers, does not support or oppose the bill, said Mike Getlin, the organization's president.
“These business owners are not hostile to worker organizing. That's not who we are,” Getlin said. “The vast majority of us have also worked on the other side of the fence. We are not career managers as a whole. Therefore, we recognize the important role that a healthy workforce and strong protections for that workforce play. I understand my role.”
He said he disagrees with claims that cannabis processing facilities are unsafe.
“The idea is that these are big, rugged, unsafe facilities that are poorly maintained, that have a lot of barrels of dangerous chemicals lying around, and that people come in and don't get paid.” OLCC (Oregon) “If you've ever been in a State Liquor and Cannabis Commission licensed facility, you quickly begin to realize how dishonest it is,” he said.
Getlin added that he is concerned that the group is trying to impose more requirements on collective bargaining agreements where employers may not have a fair say.
“The worst case scenario is California, where the policy has morphed into something much more than a simple labor peace agreement, leading to complex and costly litigation and difficulties in enforcement. '' he said. “And it had a number of other negative consequences for the relationship between ownership and labor in those markets.”
At least one federal lawsuit was filed in California in April 2024. California marijuana dispensaries claim the policy is unconstitutional, violates their right to due process and supersedes federal labor laws.
Eshire said he doesn't believe Oregon has the same problem.
“We're trying to fix something here. All workers have the right to safe working conditions,” he said. “They have the right to unionize if they want to. There's no reason they shouldn't, so let's catch up with other states.”
