Teamsters Local 1932, a labor union in Southern California, has announced the availability of twenty scholarships for a new cannabis cultivation training certification program based out of the union's new training center in San Bernardino.
The cannabis cultivation training certification program is a five-week course covering topics specifically designed to prepare growers for successful harvests. Future courses are planned for manufacturing and retail.
The program also features seminars from the Agricultural Labor Relations Board (ALRB) and experts on Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) policies to ensure that workers can build their knowledge on safety and their rights at work.
In 2021, cannabis cultivation workers at Tikun in Adelanto, CA, organized to join the Teamsters Union, becoming the first unionized cannabis cultivation workforce in Southern California. The same year, the Teamsters Union committed $1.5 million to support legislative efforts to improve the cannabis workforce issues and cannabis rescheduling.
As the first unionized workforce in Southern California, Tikun will use the cannabis cultivation training certification program for a new apprenticeship pathway, which includes hands-on experience.
The City of Adelanto is exploring initiatives to help support certification and training for local residents, with the help of the Teamsters 1932 Training Center.
The cannabis industry employed 415,000 full-time workers across the country in 2021, an increase of about 30 percent from 2020, according to MJBizDaily.