Judge quashes Oregon law requiring marijuana labor agreements

A law approved by Oregon voters last fall requiring marijuana businesses in the state to strike deals with labor unions is unconstitutional, according to a federal judge.

Measure 119, which required Oregon marijuana operators to obtain labor peace agreements (LPAs) before renewing or receiving licenses, violates federal free speech protections, U.S. District Judge Michael Simon ruled Tuesday.

Oregon officials are now barred from enforcing the law.

The state Department of Justice, which argued the state’s case, has not yet said whether it will appeal, according to The Oregonian.

Simon’s ruling in a case brought in February by Oregon cannabis operators Bubbles Hash and Ascend Dispensary might bode well for similar challenges to LPA requirements brought in other jurisdictions across the country.

The decision might also bode ill for labor organizations that, after some early successes, have more recently encountered obstacles in organizing cannabis workers.

More than 55% of Oregon voters cast ballots in favor of Measure 119, which took effect Dec. 5.

The United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW) Local 555 spent more than $2 million to qualify the voter initiative for the ballot after attempts to pass an LPA requirement via the Legislature failed.

The lawsuit filed by Bubble’s Hash and Ascend Dispensary alleged that:

• The LPA requirement violated their First Amendment rights to free speech by barring them from speaking out against unionization.
• Imposing an LPA requirement on businesses violates the National Labor Relations Act.

After hearing oral arguments on April 29, Simon ruled that the LPA requirement “is preempted by the NLRA in violation of the Supremacy Clause and violates Plaintiffs’ First Amendment rights.”

“If relief is not issued,” the judge wrote, “Plaintiffs face a choice of losing their businesses or complying with an unconstitutional law. This is irreparable harm.”