Sean Hocking
A number of main authorized hashish corporations in California are dealing with allegations of violating state legislation by collaborating with and signing labor peace agreements with organizations claiming to be labor unions however who’ve did not genuinely advocate for employees’ rights. In accordance with California legislation, hashish corporations with over 20 staff are required to signal a labor peace settlement with a “bona fide labor group”. These labor peace agreements facilitate a union’s entry to staff. Labor peace agreements forestall unions from picketing or boycotting the enterprise in alternate for the enterprise agreeing to not disrupt union organizing efforts. Nonetheless, a number of unions are alleging a few of the largest hashish corporations within the state have tried to skirt this legislation by signing labor peace agreements with a corporation often known as Skilled Technical Union Native 33 (Professional-Tech).
The Teamsters Union filed a grievance with the California Agricultural Labor Relations Board (CALRB) in March of this yr, alleging that Professional-Tech was not a real labor group. After conducting an investigation, the CALRB agreed with the Teamsters, discovering that Professional-Tech has made no tangible efforts to prepare or characterize hashish trade staff and even lacks a bodily presence within the state.
At the very least 90 hashish corporations, together with a few of the largest in California, are alleged to have signed labor peace agreements with Professional-Tech and have just lately needed to scramble to make agreements with different labor unions. The implicated corporations had been supplied with 180 days to determine new labor peace agreements by the California Division of Hashish Management (CCDC).
Professional-Tech is just not the one labor group to face scrutiny. One other union, the Nationwide Agricultural Employees Union, has additionally just lately confronted related allegations of being a “sham union” from the Teamsters.
California’s hashish trade is critical, using over 83,000 folks in 2021. The CCDC has acknowledged that it’s working to boost transparency relating to labor peace agreements to strengthen labor organizations’ capability to file complaints in opposition to non-compliant corporations.
This information highlights the significance of getting an skilled legal professional assessment labor peace agreements which are required by CCDC. It is very important keep in mind that the small print of those agreements are topic to negotiation, and the distinction between an enforceable settlement and a one-sided settlement that enables a union to interact in unfair or harassing organizational techniques might be simply neglected.
