HARTFORD, CT  –  There are no cannabis employees yet to organize, but the United Food & Commercial Workers International Union is looking to be able to organize these workers as soon as they enter the door – starting with training programs.

“We’re just getting ready for when the industry hits the ground running,” Ron Petronella, president of Local 371, said.

The Department of Consumer Protection and the Social Equity Council are gathering applications from residents interested in growing, selling, and transporting the product. It’s unclear how quickly those licenses will be awarded, but retail locations are expected to be up and running before the end of the year.

Mark Espinosa, president of Local 919, said they’ve been the voice for cannabis workers across the country for the past decade.

“The United Food & Commercial Workers union is not new to this,” Espinosa said. “Our goals are to have the workers achieve some of the standards and benefits that usually only a collective bargaining agreement can produce. So they can remove themselves from this so-called gig economy.”

Espinosa said the new apprenticeship and training program offered by the union will train workers “from seed to sale.”

The programs will also ensure that cannabis jobs do mean living wages. [Read More @ CT News Junkie]