100 Joliet Cannabis Workers At Cresco Labs Join Union

Workers at the Cresco Labs cannabis cultivation center in Joliet have unionized. The workers voted 58-32 on Tuesday to join Local 881 of the United Food and Commercial Workers. A UFCW statement called the vote “precedent setting,” saying “Cresco workers are sending a message that the cannabis industry lives up to the promises it made to the communities when it lobbied for their support.” UFCW Local 881 President Steve Powell said in a statement the union “is proud of these workers and looks forward to standing with them to negotiate a fair and just contract that will improve their working conditions.” The UFCW represents about 10,000 cannabis workers nationwide and is in the process of organizing employees at other cannabis facilities in Illinois, said Zach Koutsky, legislative and political director for Local 881. The Cresco Lab workers contacted Local 881 in September after failing to resolve workplace equity issues “the traditional way,” Koutsky said.