Workers at the Columbia Care cannabis cultivation facility in Vineland, N.J., ratified their first union contract with United Food and Commercial Workers International (UFCW) Local 152, marking the end of a lengthy organizing effort that began in 2022.
The agreement, approved on June 23, includes retroactive wage increases that bring workers’ pay above industry standards, along with fully employer-paid benefits such as legal services, life insurance, and vision care.
A legal dispute over whether workers qualified as “agricultural workers” under federal law forced the union to seek state-level certification. The case helped build support for NJ Bill A4182, legislation aimed at protecting cannabis workers’ rights to unionize under state law. The bill passed the Assembly on June 30 and is awaiting a vote in the Senate Judiciary Committee.
