CA Cannabis Workers Ratify First Union Contract

LOS ANGELES — On March 8, employees at six Sweet Flower cannabis dispensaries across Los Angeles County ratified their first union contract with United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW) Local 770.

The three-year agreement covers over 100 florists, delivery drivers, and inventory associates. The contract raises the wage floor for drivers, florists and inventory associates, and establishes annual wage increases. It provides for employer contributions towards health and welfare for full-time workers, along with paid holidays, paid community volunteer hours, and seniority based vacations with pay. 

The partnership between Sweet Flower and Local 770 includes a Joint Labor Management Committee that will serve as a platform for the union and company to collaborate on issues affecting employees and the cannabis industry across California. 

Further, the agreement creates a pathway for newly opened Sweet Flower locations to choose representation by UFCW.

“Sweet Flower employees are proud to be members of Local 770,” said Helen Fiegenschie, a florist at Sweet Flower’s Culver City store. “Our contract guarantees fairness and equity in the workplace, and ensures Sweet Flower will remain a great place to work.”

“This agreement is a milestone in the development of best-in-class cannabis operators in California. Sweet Flower is delighted to have worked collaboratively with our valued team members and with the UFCW Local 770 to build a strong partnership for collaboration, employee engagement and equity, and to further build Sweet Flower’s reputation and presence as a leader in the California cannabis industry,” said Tim Dodd, co-founder and CEO of Sweet Flower.”

UFCW Local 770 represents more than 30,000 workers in grocery, retail drug, meatpacking, healthcare, and cannabis industries across Southern California.