Displaying 2 of 20 Total Records

Workers at Two Maryland Cannabis Dispensaries Join Local 400

Workers at The Apothecarium and Sweetspot cannabis dispensaries in Burtonsville and Olney, Md., voted to unionize with UFCW Local 400 on Sept. 11 and 13. Workers at both dispensaries voted to join our union family by an overwhelming margin. The Apothecarium is owned by TerrAscend Corp.

“I’m incredibly honored to be working alongside such an awesome team that believes in representation for themselves and fellow workers,” said Matt Saundry, who works at The Apothecarium in Burtonsville. “We’re grateful for the chance to work with TerrAscend to negotiate a contract. We appreciate them working with us throughout this process and I’m looking forward to what comes next.”

“This victory is just the first step into getting what we need, want and deserve,” said Alexandra Barrett, who works at Sweetspot in Olney. “By coming together and standing tall through the whole process, we are hoping for a bright future for not just our Sweetspot, but for all Sweetspot locations. We are truly building a good community for our team.”

In addition to The Apothecarium and Sweetspot, UFCW Local 400 also represents other cannabis dispensaries in Maryland, including Green Goods and Potomac Holistics in Rockville, and Story Cannabis in Mechanicsville.

Imperfect Foods Workers in California Ratify a New Contract

Nearly 80 members of UFCW Local 5 who work as delivery drivers for Imperfect Foods depots throughout Northern California ratified a new contract on August 26. Imperfect Foods is a tech-driven grocery startup that delivers surplus or “imperfect” produce and other food products directly to consumers across the country. The delivery drivers, who are based in the San Francisco Bay Area and Sacramento, joined our union in April of 2021.

The two-year contract, which will be in effect until January 2026, provides for retroactive wage structure improvements, additional paid holidays, and a guarantee on minimum hours, along with other changes sought by the UFCW Local 5 bargaining team.

The hard-won settlement comes after a long and difficult process that included a successful vote to recertify the union after a company-backed effort to end UFCW Local 5 representation at the company when the previous contract expired.

“That situation made us stronger as a union,” said Max Shaver, who is one of the workplace union leaders at Imperfect Foods. “Our members now communicate about workplace issues across the depots and everyone, including the small group who tried to bust the union, is happy with the result and we all understand that clearly, we are much better off thanks to Local 5.”