Cannabis workers at Sunnyside, a subsidiary of Cresco Labs (OTCQX:CRLBF) in River North, Illinois, voted overwhelmingly to join Teamsters Local 777.

"We are thrilled to welcome another Cresco location to Teamsters Local 777," stated Jim Glimco, president of Local 777. "Dispensary workers are seeing their counterparts at other locations organize with the Teamsters and they want to secure the benefits of a union contract for themselves. We look forward to helping these workers get their first contract and continuing to organize workers in the cannabis industry across Illinois."

Pro tip: Learn all about the future of the cannabis industry at the Benzinga Cannabis Capital Conference this October in Chicago. Hear directly from key industry players and policymakers. Get your tickets now by following this link, and access a 20% discount using the code JAVI20.

The River North dispensary is the sixth location to organize with Local 777. In the fall, Local 777 secured strong first contracts for the five other organized locations in Elmwood Park, South Beloit, Schaumburg, Rockford and Buffalo Grove, Ill., which provide significant improvements for dispensary workers.

See more: 'We Don't Plan On Stopping!' Teamsters' New Cannabis Contract In Illinois Raises Bar For Big Industry Players

"With all the negative news lately, watching unions win has been incredibly heartening," said Quinn Shaffer, a wellness advisor at Sunnyside. "Getting to be a part of that in my own small way was amazing. It feels good to see things change for the better."

In addition to these unionization milestones, several other successful unionizing efforts were undertaken across the country at major companies in 2023. These include the Cannabist Company Holdings Inc CBSTF in New Jersey, Grassdoor in California, and Verano Holdings Corp VRNOF in Chicago.

Now read: Unionized Cannabis Industry Workers Threat Is Off, Eaze Conflict Reaches Agreement

Photo: Courtesy of CRYSTALWEED cannabis on Unsplash