Last week, I mentioned WeedMD‘s production staff may be the first in the sector to unionize. That union began pushing for improved health and safety standards at WeedMD’s London, ON production facility, 18 of whose employees are self-isolating due to recent travel or proximity to people sick with COVID-19.
London Free Press
- In a letter to management, the United Food and Commercial Workers Union Canada (UFCW) argued workers needed expanded access to masks, PPEs, hand sanitizer, and staggered shift times to reduce crowding.
- Following the letter, a union rep reported the company had taken several steps, including spacing workers, removing chairs from break rooms, and offering additional hand-sanitizing and hand-washing options.
The virus is taking its toll across the sector:
Manitoba LP Delta 9 is offering retail and production staff an additional $2 per hour “grateful pay” for their work during the crisis.
GrowthOp
Though early-pandemic sales booms for REC retail were an optimistic sign for some, US sales have begun to drop off dramatically.
Nasdaq
One thing the COVID crisis probably won’t change is insurance–at least, not for the time being. However, Fuse Insurance CEO Kevin Lea noted increased REC delivery vehicles in some places will be offset by the number of other cars not on the road. (He warned REC retailers that non-pandemic-related risks like cyber breaches remain constant during crises like COVID.)
Insurance Business
- This is US-based advice on how to manage a cannabis company during the COVID crisis, but there’s information here useful to Canadian operators.
GreenEntrepreneur - Audits for Canadian facilities seeking EU Good Manufacturing Practice certification are basically on hold for the time being due to COVID-related travel restrictions.
MJ Biz Daily
Toronto’s famous 4,000-pound concrete blocks–which the city used, to varying effect, to barricade access to scofflaw dispensaries last summer–have found a new job in the crisis. The blocks will now be used to encourage social distancing: they’ve been installed at the entrances of parking lots of popular areas.
Global News, CBC Toronto, DailyHive, BlogTO
