Hey, i'm curious about the difference between the unions i've seen mentioned here for cannabis workers.
I've seen mention about Teamsters 777, Local 881, Local 1, and Local 399.
If you are a cannabis worker with experience with any of these unions, please share your thoughts on which you went with and why.
Posted Oct 2, 2022, 4:43 PM UTC
And it doesn’t happen overnight so just know it’ll a process and corporate will pull a lot of BS during it. but worth it for the industry and the future.
I don't have any experience in the cannabis field but I've worked for both unions. Teamsters and ucfw(different locals). Jewel osco and ups to be specific
Strongly prefer teamsters. They provided me tangible benefits that I wouldnt have received without them. Mainly the pension and free healthcare.
Ucfw we got a representative passing out union pins a few times a year lol. Wages not much higher than minimum wage. No pension.
I've worked under UFCW twice and never met a union rep for either job. They also got kneecapped when Safeway shuttered Dominick's so they could take over Jewel; since Dominick's was such a major portion of their contracts, the chain going out of business hurt the office side severely, leading to massive downsizing. They weren't very good at securing better contracts so much as they just maintained a few things and allowed things to get worse due to no employee involvement during negotiations for updating contracts (the reason for that could well have been a multitude of things, but the end result sucked)
UFCW has my ire, though I hope for anyone still under their banner that they've learned lessons and improved. And to be fair; I blame Safeway more. Horrible corporate overlords.
Teamsters 777
Sure but why tho?
I already know that's one of the main 2 options, but have zero info on which is better or how they're different.
Well, have you contacted either and spoken to a union representative? That’s where you’ll get your info from, do your due diligence everyone has different opinions but, teamsters has a cannabis team, that’s why they are doing a lot as opposed to UFCW which is the one people associate with jewel. Teamsters has their foot in the door already in the cannabis industry
Ime, Teamsters was the only union worth joining imo
The Local 881 UFCW pushed for the legalization of medical cannabis back in 2011 before it was a popular move. When I worked for Beyond-hello we picked the Local 881 UFCW because the work they achieved to get access to Cannabis here in IL and they're the second largest UFCW Local and the UFCW is one of the largest Private sector Unions in America. Because of their past and their size we picked them. the Local 881 also has offices in Chicago, Edwardsville, and Marion so they're much closer than the Teamsters who work out of Indiana.
I have a lot of respect for the teamsters but the reality is they often represent Workers from industries that pay a lot already. The UFCW gets a bad rap because they represent Workers in the lowest paid industries like service. People often see the UFCW as a grocery Union and they are that but they also represent Barbers, leather Workers that make the leather for the NFL and NBA, they represent factory workers, ambulance drivers, Cannabis workers, and so much more. The UFCW have more Contracts in the Cannabis industry than any other Union. There is a lot people need to consider when picking a Union and it's so much more than "truckers get paid better than baggers" because of course they do.
The difference between teamster locals is jurisdiction. Benefits will be different as well because not all locals use the same pension/health funds, but they are all generally really good nonetheless.
As a general rule, unions try to not step on each others coat tails. There's plenty enough organizing to be done that there's no need to compete for the resources that takes, which your question seems to assume happens.
Generally, questions about who organizes what get worked out informally prior to organizing drives starting. There are exceptions to this, but they tend to prove why a competition between unions is usually of little value for workers.
which your question seems to assume happens.
uh, what?
Local 399 is the operating engineers union, as far as I’m aware they’re not getting into cannabis any time soon.
This website ( https://www.ilcannabisunions.com/workers/) mentions them as being involved with 881 as part of the move to unionize cannabis workers.
I know they will stalk you in the employee parking lot, trying to convince you better wages from paperwork showing how they got budtenders in SanFran $24/hr, thinking your too fucking stupid to consider the cost of living comparison. Maybe I’m naive, but they seem way too fucking pushy to be helping people they don’t know without alternative motives
Nearly everything unions fought for in the 20s, 30s, etc. have since been implemented into federal labor laws. The government offers you that protection from your employer just for paying taxes.
When I was union, I had a lot of experience being told I can't do things or be treated any better because that's what was negotiated into my contract. They're really good at coming off as your friend until you're locked in paying dues.
So to be clear, you aren't a cannabis worker who is unionized in Illinois?
I am a cannabis worker with direct experience working with those unions in other industries.
Edit for clarification: I am an Illinois cannabis worker.
In my experience pick the biggest union. If shit goes down it means stuff like strike pay and the like. Little ones don’t have that much cash. Just like an insurance group, the bigger it is the more the cost is spread out. I walked picket 4 hours a day three days a week for $60. When a nearby UAW went out a few years later they were getting $250 plus. They had about 8x the membership we did.