Workers at a marijuana cultivation and manufacturing facility in south St. Louis, Missouri have officially voted to unionize after a two-year dispute over whether they were legally eligible for federal labor protections.
Employees at the Sinse cannabis facility, owned by BeLeaf Medical, won the union vote 11-3 after sealed ballots were finally opened Friday following a ruling by the National Labor Relations Board.
The vote marks a significant labor development within Missouri’s growing marijuana industry, where workers and employers have increasingly clashed over working conditions, representation and labor rights.
According to reporting by Missouri Independent, the dispute began in 2023 after BeLeaf Medical challenged whether certain post-harvest employees qualified for union protections under federal law.
The company argued the workers were agricultural laborers, a classification generally excluded from protections under the National Labor Relations Act.
Earlier this month, however, the National Labor Relations Board rejected that argument, ruling the workers were not agricultural laborers under federal labor law.
The board found the employees primarily worked on activities such as producing pre-rolls, entering data and processing dried marijuana into finished products.
Workers celebrate long-awaited result
Several former and current workers gathered at a St. Louis brewery Friday evening after the ballots were finally counted.
“It’s kind of like bittersweet,” former employee Will Braddum told Missouri Independent after the results were announced. “It’s really nice to have changed the industry for the better, even if the people over at Sinse don’t decide to go in the direction of unionizing and protecting their own rights, at least they have the opportunity now. It sets a precedent.”
Braddum was among more than a dozen workers reportedly fired in 2023 during the unionization effort.
Other organizers said the lengthy legal fight reflected broader concerns among marijuana industry workers about job protections and workplace representation.
“Obviously, I wish the ballots would have been opened a little sooner,” former employee Scotti Iman told Missouri Independent. “I think this kind of shows that people in this field definitely need somebody to stick up for them, because it’s a little easy to get steamrolled.”
Company says it will negotiate in good faith
BeLeaf Medical said it respects the outcome of the election.
In a statement to Missouri Independent, Douglas Purvis, the company’s director of human resources, said: “BeLeaf Medical is committed to bargaining in good faith, and look forward to working together toward a mutually acceptable agreement.”
The workers are represented by UFCW Local 655, which has organized grocery, retail and cannabis workers across Missouri.
Union officials said the next step will involve requesting bargaining dates with the company.
Laura Kelley, president of UFCW Local 655, said the case demonstrated the importance of workers having representation.
“The most important thing we have is our voice,” Kelley told Missouri Independent. “Labor has been around a long time, and I think sometimes people forget what we actually stand for – and we stand for that voice.”
The case could also influence future labor disputes within Missouri’s expanding cannabis sector, particularly as questions continue surrounding how marijuana workers are classified under federal labor law.
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