UFCW Local 27 filed unfair labor practice charges with the National Labor Relations Board on May 1 against Apothecarium Dispensary in Salisbury and TerrAscend Corp. against the parent company.

The charges stem from an incident in which an assistant general manager removed union cookies from an employee bulletin board, materials that are protected under federal law. Employees have a legally guaranteed right to organize, communicate and distribute union information in designated workplace areas. Impeding these rights is a direct violation of the National Labor Relations Act.

Such actions may result in federal consequences, including remedies established by the National Labor Relations Board.

Local 27 has replaced workers at The Apothecarium in Salisbury since fall 2024. Since organizing, workers have been working for a first-ever union contract that guarantees fair wages, workplace protections, and the dignity and respect every worker deserves.

Instead of negotiating in good faith, TerrAscend has wasted thousands of dollars on a professional anti-union law firm in an effort to delay and deny these workers a fair contract. These are resources that could have been used to improve workers’ wages, benefits and working conditions.

The company’s financial track record highlights the wrong priorities. TerrAscend’s stock, which once traded for more than $15 per share, is now around $0.69 per share and is down about $0.30 this year. Despite this decline, the company continues to invest in antagonizing its workers rather than working toward a fair cooperative agreement.

Local 27 remains positive about the prospects of concluding negotiations with the company in the coming weeks and securing a first fair contract for workers at the Salisbury location.

“Federal law is federal law,” said Local 27 President Jason Chorpenning. “Workers have the right to organize without interference, intimidation or retaliation. These workers have stood together, exercised their rights, and are demanding a fair contract and basic respect. We will not tolerate violations of those rights.”

Local 27 emphasized that it will continue to aggressively defend the rights of its members and ensure that employers are held accountable under federal labor law.

“I don’t support recreational marijuana. I think the current regulatory system around medicinal use is fine.”

Author: Mitch Perry, Phoenix, Florida

the subject of Should Florida legalize recreational cannabis? Smart & Safe Florida, the organization behind the initiative to return to voters this November, disappeared as a major campaign issue earlier this year after falling short of the nearly 880,000 verified petition signatures needed to qualify for the statewide ballot.

That defeat came a year and a half after nearly 56 Floridians voted to legalize recreational marijuana on the November 2024 ballot, a clear majority but far short of the 60 percent needed for passage.

While it’s not something voters will decide this year, Floridians may want to know where the candidates for statewide office stand.

Speaking at a “Business Women for Byron” campaign event Tuesday at the Getaway, a waterfront restaurant and Tiki bar in St. Petersburg, the first question an audience member asked GOP gubernatorial candidate Byron Donalds was his stance on the issue.

“I don’t condone recreational marijuana,” Donalds responded. “I think the current regulatory system around drug use is fine.”

Donalds has previously admitted to being arrested for possession of “a dime bag of marijuana” as a teenager, and recently admitted to CBS Miami he actually sold small amounts of cannabis in his youth.

Now he says he doesn’t support expanding legal weed use beyond the 924,820 Floridians listed as medical marijuana patients, according to the Office of Medical Marijuana Use.

Acceptance in medicine, but never for entertainment

Other Republicans running for governor share Donalds’ sentiments.

“I am against recreational marijuana in Florida,” investment firm CEO James Fishback told the Phoenix in a text message. “I’ve seen what it’s done in cities that have already tried it, from New York to Chicago to Washington DC. The stench of pot in public parks and outside our schools can never reach Florida.”

However, Fishback says he will always protect “the right of those who have a legitimate medical purpose, including our U.S. military veterans.”

“No one should be denied herbal medicine and pushed toward an addictive prescription from big pharma for painkillers,” she said. “As governor, I will support medical marijuana. But I won’t allow champs to smoke pot in a public park, just like we already don’t allow them to drink in one.”

“I’ve been clear from day one. I am totally opposed to legalizing marijuana,” Gov. Jay Collins said in a video posted on social media on April 26. “We’ve seen the impact in other states, and it’s not where Florida is headed. I’m with Governor DeSantis on this one. No compromise, and no money from the marijuana industry. That’s all my opponents can say.”

“I’m against recreational marijuana,” former House Speaker Paul Renner said Wednesday at a panel discussion on high energy prices in Hillsborough County.

“We have medical. It was put in the Constitution (in 2016). If people want to get it, they can get it. And we opened that up as much as needed, but I’m against recreation. Period. If it goes back to the ballot, like Gov. DeSantis did.”

DeSantis announced in June 2024 that he would use a political action committee to fight the constitutional amendment on recreational marijuana, saying he could not believe the Florida Supreme Court had agreed to allow the measure’s language to go on the November ballot.

He later used tens of millions of taxpayer dollars to campaign against that proposal and another measure that would have guaranteed abortion rights in Florida, according to a Tampa Bay Times report.

Where are the Democrats?

Phoenix caught up with the two top Democrats running for governor this year: former GOP U.S. Rep. David Jolly and Orange County Mayor Jerry Demings.

“I think the role of the governor is to represent the majority of the state, and the majority of the state asked for it, and I think we should,” Jolly told the Phoenix in a phone call Tuesday.

The Pinellas County Democrat says he voted against Amendment 3 in 2024, which would have called for the legalization of recreational marijuana use for adults.

But since announcing his candidacy last year, Jolly has emphasized that he will work to implement all of the recent constitutional amendments that have been approved by a majority in Florida, but have failed to reach the high margin of 60 percent needed to take advantage.

“Recreational marijuana received more than 50 percent of the vote in the constitutional amendment process and I would support enactment and introduce any amendment that received more than 50 percent of the vote in the legislature. That includes open primaries, recreational marijuana, and the 4th Amendment on reproductive freedom,” he said.

The only major gubernatorial candidate Phoenix couldn’t clear was Demings. While serving as Orlando’s police chief in the 2010s, Demings opposed constitutional amendments that would have legalized medical marijuana. 2014 and 2016

The Phoenix reached out to the Demings campaign by phone and email for two days this week, but did not receive a response. Calls to the phone number listed in the latest press release from the Demings campaign were answered by a recording that the person with the number did not have a voice mail system set up.

President Trump passed the 3rd Amendment

One prominent Florida Republican who supported the 3rd Amendment in 2024 was President Donald Trump.

“As I’ve said before, I believe it’s time to end the unnecessary arrests and incarcerations of adults for small amounts of marijuana for personal use. We also need to put smart rules in place, giving adults access to a safe and tested product,” Trump posted on Truth Social in September 2024. “Like Florida, I will vote YES on Amendment 3 in November.”

In that position, the president promised to work to make marijuana a Schedule I drug under the Controlled Substances Act if elected to the White House, which he did in an executive order in December.

The US Department of Justice announced last month that it would immediately move FDA-approved marijuana products, along with items regulated by a state medical marijuana license, under Title III. Medical cannabis falls under the category of controlled drugs that have a recognized medical use, such as Tylenol, and not Schedule I drugs, such as heroin and LSD, which have no medical use and a high potential for abuse.

This story was first published by the Florida Phoenix.

user photo Philip Steffan.

Planet 13 Holdings has appointed the Honorable Nancy Saitta and Leilani Bradford as independent directors, filling two newly created seats on the Board, effective April 24, 2026. Justice Saitta brings two decades of judicial experience, including service as Chief Justice of the Nevada Supreme Court. Ms. Bradford brings over 20 years of real estate financing and transaction structuring experience. Both appointments broaden the Board’s independent representation and deepen governance, law enforcement and real estate. Both directors have been appointed to the Audit Committee, the Compensation Committee and the Corporate Governance and Nomination Committee.

“Justice Saitta brings a depth of judicial and governance experience that few public company boards have direct access to,” said Bob Groesbeck, co-chairman and co-CEO of Planet 13. “His 20 years on the Nevada bench, including leadership on the state’s highest court, will strengthen our oversight as we operate in an industry where regulatory rigor and disciplined decision making are essential.”

“As a Las Vegas company, we are proud to welcome two outstanding members of our local community to the Board,” said Larry Scheffler, co-chairman, CEO and co-founder of Planet 13. “Ms. Bradford has spent more than two decades building a reputation for Las Vegas real estate, structuring complex transactions and developing innovative financial disciplines that will continue to directly improve our financial growth and transaction models. opportunities.”

© Planet 13

Judge Saitta served as a member of the Nevada Judiciary for 20 years, including from 2007 to 2016 and from 2007 to 2016 and from 2011 to 2012. from 1996 to 1998. Earlier in his career, he served as the Nevada State Attorney General and Children’s Advocate and practiced law in private practice. Since 2017, Saitta has served with Advanced Justice Resolution Management as a mediator, arbitrator, special master, consultant and private judge, and continues as a senior district judge for the Nevada Supreme Court. Justice Saitta received her JD from Wayne State University School of Law and her BA from Wayne State University.

Since 2005, Ms. Bradford has served as a principal and director of SHEQ Properties, a Las Vegas-based real estate company. While at SHEQ, he has played a key role in the sourcing, underwriting and structuring of transactions, particularly in the medical and professional property sectors, and developing the company’s Shared Equity Model, which provides ownership options to physicians and service providers in connection with long-term lease agreements. Prior to joining SHEQ, Ms. Bradford had a career in accounting and finance. He is a Certified Public Accountant and earned a Bachelor of Science in Accounting from the University of Nevada, Reno.