Lume dispensary workers in Escanaba voted July 23 to join the United Food and Commercial Workers Local 1473, marking the first time a cannabis shop in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula voted to unionize. Eighteen budtenders or “luminaries,” including lead budtenders, make up the unionized staff at the store, with 14 workers voting yes to join the union.
As America’s largest cannabis union, the UFCW has spent over a decade in this emerging industry, advocating for workers and fighting to establish critical labor protections to ensure that as the industry grows, cannabis industry jobs are safe, equitable, and family-sustaining.
“UFCW Local 1473 is the cannabis union in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan and all of Wisconsin,” said UFCW Local 1473 President Jake Bailey. “These workers saw the importance of union representation and have stood together in solidarity to form their very own union. You can see by the outcome of the vote earlier today that these workers have remained steadfast at gaining a true voice in the workplace. We are proud to take the next step with the workers and bargain their first agreement.”
Added Amanda Levesque, a Lume luminary: “Today we showed the world that when workers stand together, we win. I’m so proud of my fellow budtenders for coming together to make the decision to pave a new path by being the first cannabis shop in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan to vote for union representation. We hope to inspire cannabis workers across the state and the country to join together to fight for a more just and prosperous future for the industry.”
“Every day when we clock in, we give the job our all to ensure our customers have the best experience possible and help make Lume the successful brand it is. We look forward to bargaining a strong contract that gives us the protections we need and reflects the hard work we put into this job day in and day out.”
UFCW Local 1473 is part of the UFCW International, the largest private sector union in the United States, representing 1.2 million workers and their families in cannabis, grocery, meatpacking, food processing, healthcare, retail and other essential industries in all 50 states, Canada, and Puerto Rico. The UFCW is committed to organizing and supporting cannabis workers across the industry, from seed to sale. Learn more about the UFCW