Workers at Trulieve’s Phoenix cultivation facility ratified Arizona’s first cannabis farmworker union contract, setting a precedent for cannabis labor rights and agricultural unionization in the state.
In a development that could alter the trajectory of Arizona’s cannabis industry, workers at Trulieve Cannabis Corp.’s Magnolia cultivation facility in central Phoenix have ratified the state’s first union contract for agricultural cannabis workers—marking the first such achievement in a quarter-century.
The ratification, finalized in May 2025, came after more than a year of sustained organizing, legal navigation, and negotiations. Though only 43 employees were directly involved, the implications of their action could ripple throughout a sector that’s spent more than a decade operating in a gray area between legality and exclusion—especially when it comes to labor protections.
This agreement, secured with the support of United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW) Local 99, represents more than a victory for a single facility. It’s a template for what “cannabis labor rights” could look like in a state—and an industry—still figuring out what fair employment means when federal laws remain out of step with local economic realities.
A Rare Breakthrough in Arizona Agricultural Unionization
Before now, the only successful union campaign involving Arizona’s agricultural workers took place in 2000, when Eurofresh tomato hothouse workers organized under the state’s agricultural labor law. That win stood alone for nearly 25 years—until Trulieve workers revived the possibility in 2024.
Their decision to unionize began with a vote in January of that year and culminated with the formal ratification of a collective bargaining agreement in May 2025. Though small in number, the Magnolia workers’ vote reopened a long-dormant path toward representation for farm laborers in Arizona.
What makes this especially significant is that cultivation workers operate under a different set of constraints than the better-known retail and delivery segments of the cannabis workforce. Retail cannabis workers, particularly in dispensaries, have managed to organize in previous years. But unionization efforts rarely gained traction among cultivation teams—owing partly to legal barriers and partly to the structural isolation built into agricultural work.
Contextualizing a Turning Point
Cannabis legalization transformed what was once an illicit industry into a rapidly regulated economy, but worker protections didn’t evolve at the same pace. For a while, employees entering legal cannabis roles—especially in cultivation—found themselves doing agricultural labor without the rights commonly granted to most U.S. private-sector workers.
That’s because the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA), the primary federal law protecting the right to unionize, specifically excludes agricultural workers. And because cannabis cultivation falls under that category, growers like the team at Trulieve were left with little federal recourse.
Arizona’s agricultural labor law, however, created an alternative avenue. Through the state’s Agricultural Employment Relations Act, workers were able to unionize legally under the authority of the Arizona Agricultural Employment Relations Board (AERB). Though seldom used, the law gave Trulieve employees a framework for formal organization—an opportunity not all states extend to farm laborers. Their successful use of it adds a new chapter to the story of cannabis labor rights.
The Contract: More Than Just Wages
The contract negotiated between UFCW Local 99 and Trulieve includes a broad slate of benefits that reflect both traditional labor gains and cannabis-specific innovations.
Employees secured guaranteed wage increases and structured promotional pathways. Just-cause termination protections replaced the prior at-will employment standard, giving workers due-process protections in disciplinary matters. The contract also establishes grievance procedures, formal scheduling practices, and paid leave across several categories, including personal, parental, sick, and bereavement.
One unique provision allows workers to take home cannabis samples from the products they help cultivate. This benefit isn’t just a perk—it signals a broader industry shift toward recognizing cultivators’ expertise and embedding quality control in the workforce itself. In a sector where knowledge of plant phenotypes and potency profiles carries operational value, that sort of provision is more than symbolic.
By integrating industry-specific protections alongside traditional labor guarantees, this contract reflects an evolving understanding of what cannabis labor rights should include—especially in agricultural contexts.
UFCW Local 99: Strategic Adaptation
This success didn’t happen in a vacuum. UFCW Local 99—already well-established in Arizona through its work with grocery and food processing workers—adapted its organizing tactics to suit the cannabis cultivation environment.
Unlike retail workers, who tend to share space and interact directly with the public, cultivation staff often operate behind closed doors in facilities removed from urban centers. Language barriers, geographic dispersion, and industry turnover complicate organizing in these spaces. To overcome this, UFCW organizers built trust over time through worker-led outreach and cultivated a leadership committee inside the Magnolia facility that reflected the site’s diverse workforce.
The union also drew on lessons from other cannabis campaigns—including mixed results at Curaleaf locations in Arizona. Those campaigns showed that organizing success hinges on timing, workplace culture, and whether employees view their jobs as long-term careers or short-term gigs. At Trulieve, organizers leaned into the idea that cultivation is skilled labor, deserving of the same rights afforded to other specialized trades.
Setting Precedents: What Comes Next?
The ratification of the Trulieve contract sets a precedent not only for Arizona, but for other states facing similar regulatory and legal conditions. While more mature cannabis markets like California and Massachusetts have seen union success in both retail and cultivation, many newer or mid-growth states are still catching up—especially in sectors that fall outside NLRA coverage.
In Arizona, this breakthrough may inspire similar campaigns in other agricultural facilities. According to labor analysts, several other cultivation sites are already on union radars. Meanwhile, companies throughout the cannabis sector—particularly those facing retention issues or public scrutiny—may reevaluate their posture toward collective bargaining.
There’s also a possibility that Trulieve’s move could normalize union cooperation in cannabis. Unlike some industry employers who resorted to union-busting tactics, Trulieve opted for negotiation over confrontation. That strategy may signal a new willingness within the cannabis corporate world to work with labor rather than against it—especially as unionization gains visibility and public support.
Bridging Labor Rights and Industry Evolution
For all its momentum, the cannabis industry still grapples with uneven legal structures, steep compliance costs, and ongoing stigma. Within that environment, labor organizing can either be seen as a risk or as a stabilizing force.
Trulieve’s contract suggests the latter. By addressing job security, pay equity, scheduling consistency, and even product knowledge, the agreement offers a vision for how labor rights can evolve alongside the industry itself. As the cannabis market matures, so too will the expectations of its workforce.
The Trulieve campaign also contributes to a larger conversation about the status of cannabis work as a legitimate profession. Cultivation jobs require technical expertise in horticulture, pest control, nutrient management, and environmental regulation—skills not dissimilar to those in traditional agriculture or manufacturing.
The contract begins to reflect that complexity by ensuring workers have a stake not only in their workplace conditions but also in the product lifecycle.
A Blueprint for the Future
Ultimately, this union agreement acts as both a symbolic and material victory for Arizona’s cannabis laborers. It fills a gap left by federal inaction, uses state policy creatively, and sets a high bar for future agreements in the cultivation sector. Its implications stretch beyond Phoenix, providing a blueprint for workers, unions, employers, and policymakers navigating the legal limbo of cannabis labor.
Whether other cultivation teams follow Trulieve’s lead remains to be seen, but the groundwork is there. With the legal mechanisms proven viable and the precedent established, cannabis labor rights in Arizona now have a foothold in the soil.
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