BY HUEY TACKNIN and COCO SMYTH

On Sept. 27, workers at the Herbal Wellness Center cannabis dispensary in Columbus, Ohio, began a strike demanding fairness from management at the company.

Herbal Wellness Center workers, represented by Herbal Wellness Center United (Teamsters Local 413), won recognition for their union a few years ago when the store was known as Strawberry Fields and was run by a prior management team.

The original management sold the company, at which point a larger corporation took ownership and a new set of problems presented themselves to the workers. As part of the transition process, the budtenders of Strawberry Fields had to reapply for their positions and half of the workforce was let go. Today, only six workers remain of the 24 who worked there before the management transition, mostly due to layoffs and firings. The store now runs with far fewer employees than when the store was known as Strawberry Fields.

HWC United has continued to advocate for the workers and has been demanding a decent contract and fair negotiations with their employer. Due to lack of progress in negotiations for over a year, HWC workers had no choice but to go on strike to bring management to the table.

Since the 27th, workers have set up daily picket lines outside of the Herbal Wellness Center and have won significant community support. Many union workers and labor organizers have come out to join HWC United to support them on the picket line. Community members driving by the busy road that Herbal Wellness Center sits on regularly honk to show their support for the workers and their demands. Even some workers who had been laid off or fired during the management transition joined the picket line “to help us get better,” as one current employee put it.

Due to the strike, Herbal Wellness Center has been forced to bring in management from other locations to scab on the budtenders, yet has still needed to reduce the store’s hours of operations. Large portions of their customer base have respected the picket line and refused to shop at the store through the duration of the strike. While no figures are publicly available, workers believe that the company’s profits have been significantly impacted by the ongoing strike.

On the picket line, we heard directly from workers about their experiences and their demands. Their attitudes and focus were strong and determined, from the first employee that we talked with to the last. We spoke with three employees in more engaging conversations, while a few other employees also contributed to the discussion. We were struck by their resolve to get a fair deal, involving wages, administrative processes and rules, fair hours and scheduling for employees, etc.

The workers emphasized how they want to resolve the unfair labor practices that have predominated since the new management took over. They demand job security and want fair disciplinary processes. There is a strong feeling that the prior layoffs were unjust, and that since then, there has been an atmosphere of favoritism that has led to further unfair firings. Workers want to see formal disciplinary procedures that can bring fairness to these processes.

Another qualm workers had was with unequal pay and raises. HWC workers feel that these inequalities in pay and raises without any serious processes or explanations is unfair.

A final key demand that workers highlighted was formal procedures for successorship of the company. The handover from the old Strawberry Fields management to the new Herbal Wellness Center management led to large layoffs and a variety of negative changes for the working conditions of the remaining employees. In the case of future changes in management, HWC workers want protections to prevent these types of unilateral actions on the part of management. They are demanding “successorship,” in which employees would have a say in what happens to employees in case of a change of ownership.

The workers at HWC highlighted repeatedly that they’re making these demands because of how much they love their jobs. One employee, Ian, stated that this has been his “favorite job.” But when the business changed ownership, he had his hours cut back while many other co-workers were laid off. He lost four to eight working hours per weekend. Nonetheless, he stated, “I love this job so much that I’m out here striking for it.”

Kalyana, another worker, shared that she has “never done this [strike] before” but believes the “strike is a good thing. I think that we’re being fair.” Another employee summed up their vision in these words: “We want to be protected; we want to be where we can grow as workers.”

As of writing, the strike has been going for almost two weeks. HWC workers on the picket line were in high spirits and believed that the company would come back to the table to negotiate with them soon.

We encourage workers to spread the word about the strike and offer their support to Herbal Wellness Center workers demands. Solidarity and support from the community can materially aid the strikers bring management back to the table and recognize their demands. The demands that HWC workers are putting forward are very simple. Every worker should have fair working conditions and protections. And HWC workers are showing the means for the working class to secure their rights—through solidarity and struggle.

By ERNIE GOTTA

Read here the news and views from the class struggle in the U.S. and internationally! This edition features news from Connecticut, Ohio, Kentucky, Philadelphia, and Los Angeles.

Auto workers in Conn. threaten strike at Cummins

UAW Local 379 is demanding wage and health benefit increases, profit sharing, and job security at Cummins/Jacob Vehicle Systems in Bloomfield, Conn. Union members have rallied with their bargaining committee and practicing walking the picket line, with 98% in favor of calling a strike if a satisfactory deal can’t be reached. On Thursday, Sept. 25, UAW members held practice pickets outside the factory on Dudley Town Road.

In 2022 Cummins acquired Jacob Vehicle Systems (JVS), maker of the “Jake Brake” into its portfolio. The Jake Brake was actually invented by Clessie Cummins, founder of Cummins. JVS makes engine braking, cylinder deactivation, start and stop and thermal management technologies and was acquired from Alta Industrial Motion Corp as part of a deal that would secure engine components qualified under the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement.

Profits have soared at Cummins/JVS. In 2024 alone, the company recorded $8.4 billion in gross profits and $3.9 billion in net income, paid out $21.9 million to its CEO, and distributed $969 million to shareholders. Meanwhile, workers’ wages have stagnated, topping out at $26 per hour.

Follow Workers Voice CT on Facebook to get updates on practice pickets and how to show solidarity should the workers decide to shut down production.

Chicago Teamsters strike Mauser over unsafe conditions, wages, and immigration protections

Members of Teamsters Local 705 at Mauser Packaging Solutions have been on strike since June 9. Mauser, a multi-national company with roughly $5 billion in revenue, reconditions industrial containers that hold dangerous chemicals like acetone. Newly released videos on Local 705’s Facebook page “show clouds of dust, smoke, and fumes engulfing the filthy warehouse. Visible fumes rise out of barrels of hydrofluoric acid and other poisonous chemicals. Orange clouds are pumped out of the warehouse and into Chicago’s airspace. Barrels are positioned near clear structural hazards like cracked walls and damaged pillars. These images confirm what striking Mauser Teamsters have charged: that Mauser is putting its workers’ in daily, direct danger.”

Workers are shutting down production to demand not only safer working conditions and better wages but also protections against ICE raids without juridical warrants.

Despite not costing the company a dime, Mauser has refused to agree to common sense protections for its workers. Since the start of the Chicago strike, the Teamsters union has expanded picketing at Mauser in Los Angeles and in Minnesota.

Labor disputes between Mauser and Teamster members started in Seattle in April when 20 members of Teamsters Local 117 were locked out after the company sent an unacceptable final offer to the union negotiating team. The workers remain locked out and fighting for their jobs.

“Mauser tried to push us out instead of bargaining fairly,” said Brian Perfitt, a locked-out Teamster at ICS and member of Local 117. “Now they’re trying the same thing in Chicago—but they’re not just fighting one group of Teamsters. They’re up against the entire Teamsters Union.”

UAW members in Ohio and Kentucky ratify contract gains at GE Aerospace

Some 600 members of the United Auto Workers (UAW) at GE Aerospace returned to work in Ohio and Kentucky last week after ratifying a contract by 82% following a three-week strike. UAW announced on their website, “After a long and challenging path, your bargaining committee is proud to announce that we have reached a tentative agreement with the Company! This five-year agreement delivers significant wins for our members, including: Minimum Workforce Guarantee to protect our jobs and future. $3,500 in cash payments to help offset rising healthcare costs. Additional personal time for all members. Vacation time increases to provide members with more time off. No changes to our grievance or strike language—our protections remain strong.”

UAW members walked off the job after nearly a month of negotiations failed to reach a tentative agreement. UAW workers at the factory in Evendale, Ohio, halted their production of high-temperature engine components for military and commercial use. In Erlanger, Ky., the union workers shut down the production of   aircraft engine parts, as well as closing the distribution center for GE Aerospace commercial hardware.

During the strike, the UAW released a statement saying, “Between 2022 to 2024, GE Aerospace has reaped record profit surpassing $17 billion and over $16 billion in shareholder distributions. Notably, a 5-year deal meeting the workers’ demands to maintain their current health care with no premium increases, strengthen job security, and add more time off, would cost GE just $75 million—which is only 1% of its 2024 profits.”

UNITE HERE hotel workers in Philadelphia take on the bosses

About 98% of the UNITE HERE Local 274 members working at the Sheraton Hotel in Downtown Philadelphia voted to authorize a strike. The Sheraton is the largest of Philadelphia’s unionized hotels and is the at the center of contract negations that will feature eight other union hotels, totaling around 1000 workers. Workers at the Hampton Inn Center City-Convention Center approved their own strike authorization vote on Thursday, Sept. 25.

A strike across all eight hotels could hamstring the industry as the city looks to capitalize on tourism. “Next year, tourism is going to bring in over a billion dollars to our region,” said Sheraton room attendant Francine Eason. “Before all that money comes in, we need to make sure we’re getting our fair share.”

The room attendants, cooks, bartenders, banquet staff, dishwashers, front desk, and servers who make up the membership at the Sheraton have already waited over a year for a new contract and are tired of the hotel industry dragging their feet. The key to successful hotel strikes has always been mobilizing the striking power of the largest amount of workers possible across the industry. This was demonstrated by the UNITE HERE San Francisco hotel strike in September 2024, when 2500 hotel workers across the city at the Marriott, Hyatt, and Hilton threw a wrench into the works of the hospitality industry.

Los Angeles budget woes put city workers in a tight spot

Labor unions representing municipal workers in Los Angeles made concessions to prevent layoffs. The agreements include up to a week of voluntary furlough days. The LA City Coalition of Unions and Engineers and Architects Association agreed to take “unpaid holidays” in 2026 to prevent 300 layoffs. Pressured by a $1 billion budgetary gap—largely due to Trump’s cuts in federal spending via the “Big Beautiful Bill”—costs due to massive wildfires, and lower tax revenue, the city of Los Angeles threatened to layoff 1600 workers in April. The city has also faced billions of dollars in payouts due to AB 218 legislation signed by Gov. Gavin Newsom, which created an extension for survivors of child sex abuse to file claims.

In April, the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) launched a ULP strike, which took 50,000 city workers off the job. The County of Los Angeles stated that SEIU members would receive a “$5,000 one-time ratification bonus, a 2% cost of living adjustment (COLA) and $2,000 bonus in year two (effective 10/1/26), and a 5% COLA in year three of the contract (effective 10/1/27).”

At the same time, LA County officials put the blame for future social program cuts on the union workers, stating, “Funding this tentative labor agreement will require making budget cuts that will affect some programs. These sacrifices will be necessary to avoid a structural deficit as we move to provide fair compensation for our workforce in these difficult times.”

While municipal workers are being pressed around modest wage increases, the city is showing its real priorities by giving $2.62 billion to land developers for the expansion of the L.A. Convention Center ahead of the 2028 Olympics. Historically, infrastructure projects like stadiums and convention centers funded by public tax dollars are a boon for private investors and city officials who receive kickbacks while driving municipal budgets deeper in debt.

Photo: UNITE-HERE Local 274 workers picket outside the Hilton Garden Inn in Philadelphia. (Alejandro A. Alvarez / Philadelphia Inquirer)