We are
UFCW Local 555
The United Food & Commercial Workers
UFCW 555, Oregon's largest private sector labor union, is led by an executive board of rank-and-file members voted on and elected by the membership. Across a variety of industries, we are 35,000 members strong. You may recognize us as the grocery workers at your local Fred Meyer, Albertsons, or, Safeway. You may also recognize us as your healthcare workers at Kaiser Permanente. But first and foremost, we are parents, students, and valued community members. By standing united, we ensure that our families and our coworkers are treated with respect, have access to health care, and are able to live fulfilling lives.
The CBN Strike for Recognition
The fight for the rights of cannabis workers is personal to us. In 2022, workers at the Cannabis Nation (CBN) growsite in Gresham, Oregon chose to unionize with Local 555. Normally, an employer would be legally required to recognize a Union that is voted in by a majority of their employees. However, the employer took advantage of a legal loophole to refuse to acknowledge the union or meet them at the bargaining table. Left with no legal recourse, the workers at CBN went on strike.
Workers inside CBN’s grow site have worked in conditions unthinkable to most modern Americans. Workers faced a number of workplace hazards including:
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Being ordered to ignore fire alarms - a frequent occurrence caused by the pesticides sprayed in unventilated rooms
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No safety training for dangerous chemicals
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Minimal safety equipment
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Management misrepresenting the safety of dangerous chemicals
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Inhalation of toxic pesticides
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Chemical burns with no chemical shower
When safety concerns were brought up, multiple workers reported being verbally attacked for putting their personal safety over the efficiency of the grow site.
CBN is not unique. Stories like these are common all across Oregon.
A Culture of Abuse
The Promise of a Brighter Future
The CBN workers' strike was not a strike for higher wages, better benefits, or even to fix the safety issues at their workplace. It was a strike for recognition of their union so that they could meet their employer eye-to-eye to solve the problems they were facing. In nearly every other industry, a strike for recognition is a long outdated concept, made unnecessary in America by New-Deal-Era legislation. Up against the wall with no legal protection, the strike ended without the employer recognizing the union. Most left to find employment elsewhere.
Passing Measure 119 would make such strikes unneccessary.
Find us at ufcw555.org