Workers at the Restore Integrative Wellness Center, a medical marijuana dispensary in Elkins Park, voted to unionize earlier this month, writes Kristen Mosbrucker-Garza for the WHYY.

The employees informed the company that they wanted to unionize on April 20, the biggest marijuana holiday of the year.

Once that was shared, the vibe at work changed, said 26-year-old Robert Franco.

“Everybody was always anxious,” he said. “It was like walking on eggshells the entire time.”

According to Wendell Young, the United Food and Commercial Workers International Union president for Local 1776, the company opposed the idea vehemently. In the last several months, it hired anti-union educators who were tasked with holding meetings with workers before the vote. Even the company’s top management sent out an email a day ahead of the vote asking them not to unionize because that would destroy the relationship between the employees and the company.

“[Restore] utilized a lot of the typical scare tactics and intimidation,” said Young. “They created a hostile work environment.”

But despite the company’s efforts, close to 69 percent of workers voted “yes” to unionizing the Elkins Park store.

Read more about the unionization efforts in the WHYY.

_____________________

Introduction to Medical Cannabis.