As the BC liquor industry copes with the ongoing job action initiated by the BC General Employees Union (BCGEU), the cannabis industry could also be facing a drastic supply problem.
At least one BC cannabis company is seeing an immediate effect on supply with stock already running low, but the executive director for the Retail Cannabis Council of BC thinks the impacts of job action could be catastrophic.
Job action only began a week ago at several BC Liquor Distribution branches.
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Burb, a BC-based Cannabis company, told Daily Hive that cannabis stores are nearly out of stock province-wide.
It said it probably couldn’t go another week without product. Worse, they’re having to lay off staff.
“We’ve reduced hours across all locations and are working through laying off a bunch of staff members who had their hours cut. We will likely be closing the doors shortly as we are running out of inventory.”
Burb is also already sold out of a number of products.
We wondered how this is all shaping up at the logistical level. Is supply coming in and just not being moved out by the distribution centres? Not quite.
“Trucks have been getting turned around and producers have stopped sending shipments to BC,” said Burb.
They fear that the province will feel the effects of this for months to come.
“There will be around 500 retailers with empty shelves and backrooms needing to fully restock.”
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How this could shape the BC cannabis industry
Jaclynn Pehota is the executive director of The Retail Cannabis Council of BC and she’s convinced that this disagreement between BC and the BCGEU is already having long-lasting effects on the industry.
Many retailers were barely making lease payments as it was, and many could also be closing their doors permanently. At least seven retailers she knows of have already closed.
While supply is a major concern, it’s the ripple effect of those supply issues that might have the biggest impact. Livelihoods and more jobs are at stake. Retailers who run multiple locations are funnelling their product into their central locations.
“This is a catastrophic failure,” said Pehota.
She added that cannabis was never part of any sort of contingency plan.
“Legal cannabis distribution in BC is beholden a legislated monopoly, so that means we have a single point of access to wholesale cannabis products in BC which is the Liquor Distribution Branch (LDB).”
As an example, this means that BC retailers couldn’t tap on the shoulders of a legal distributor in Saskatchewan to help them out in the meantime.
Maybe the most shocking of all of Pehota’s revelations is the fact that a majority of the members that she has spoken to have told her they only have five to seven days of stock left on the shelves.
“No one in our organization disputes the BCGEU’s right to job action. That is not what the issue is. The issue is the employer.”
That employer in this case is of course the BC government.
With many people relying on cannabis for medical purposes, she wants the province to declare cannabis an essential service.
Thankfully, the BCGEU and the BC government are set to return to the bargaining table, but job action will continue for now.
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