Two ongoing strikes in the cannabis industry—one in Michigan and one in Pennsylvania—have become the longest work stoppages in the industry’s history, arriving just as more states integrate labor peace or collective bargaining requirements into the licensing process and ongoing compliance. The converging pressures of the market, regulatory requirements, and national labor policy are reshaping the way cannabis operators manage their workforce.
The Two Longest Strikes in Cannabis History
The strikes at Exclusive Brands in Ann Arbor, Michigan, and at Green Thumb Industries’ RISE dispensary in York, Pennsylvania, now stand as the longest in the legal cannabis market. While both actions reflect shared themes—demands for better wages, a voice in the workplace, and concerns about bargaining conduct—they are unfolding in starkly different market contexts and with different strategic aims.
In Michigan, workers at Exclusive Brands walked out after the company declined to recognize a union election and amid an unfair labor practice charge tied to the firing of a union supporter. Organizing efforts there have focused on public visibility and testing the legal contours of federal jurisdiction over cannabis workplaces. In Pennsylvania, all unionized workers at the RISE York dispensary struck following a breakdown in contract talks, pressing for wages aligned with agreements achieved elsewhere. The Pennsylvania action is a textbook leverage strike, not unlike strikes in other industries, designed to interrupt operations and force bargaining movement.
Market conditions accentuate the divide. Michigan’s open-license adult-use market has experienced oversupply and price compression, leaving thin margins that complicate wage gains even when labor organizing succeeds. Pennsylvania, by contrast, remains a limited-license, medical-only market that supports strong unit economics for multistate operators.