Lawsuit Claims Cresco Labs Cannabis Workers Owed Wages for Time Spent Putting On, Removing Safety Equipment

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A proposed class and collective action claims cannabis companies Cresco Labs Inc. and Cresco Labs, LLC have failed to pay workers for time spent donning and doffing protective clothing and safety equipment at the worksite.

Per the case, the cannabis manufacturer requires cultivation employees—including cultivation, edibles, gardening, kitchen, manufacturing, packaging, and processing agents—to put on company-issued equipment such as shoes, scrubs, masks, hair nets, arm sleeves and gloves before clocking in for their shifts and to remove the items after clocking out. The lawsuit argues Cresco Labs employees should have been paid for pre- and post-shift time spent donning and doffing personal protective equipment (PPE) given it was necessary for work-related purposes.

“The mandatory pre-shift and post-shift donning and doffing process is compensable because it was an integral and indispensable part of Plaintiffs’ and similarly situated employees’ principal work activities,” the complaint attests, contending that the cultivation workers “could not have completed their assigned work tasks without wearing the PPE.”

Cresco Labs manufactures and sells cannabis and medical cannabis products throughout the United States by way of its cultivation, manufacturing and processing centers and dispensaries located variously in Arizona, California, Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, New York, Ohio and Pennsylvania, the case explains. Workers at Cresco’s processing facilities, who are responsible for harvesting and maintaining the defendants’ cannabis gardens and preparing the companies’ products, are required to swipe a badge to enter the building before being required to pass a mandatory health screening that typically takes one to two minutes, according to the suit. Per the lawsuit, the health screening is “integral and indispensable” to employees’ principal work activities given the fact that it’s necessary to ensure that the cannabis products do not become contaminated.

After passing the health screening, employees then must spend another one to two minutes walking to another location in the facility to obtain their PPE, the suit relays. Before clocking in, the workers spend 10 to 12 minutes collecting and putting on their PPE and storing their personal items in lockers before arriving at their work stations, the case says. According to the suit, it is Cresco’s policy to require workers to put on their protective gear before the start of their shifts so they can arrive at their work stations ready to begin at their scheduled start times.

“Consequently, Plaintiffs and similarly situated employees had to arrive at the facility at least 12 to 16 minutes early to pass the mandatory health screening procedure and to complete the mandatory pre-shift donning process,” the lawsuit alleges.

The case adds that although Cresco has allowed employees to clock in five minutes early, it takes “significantly longer” than five minutes to complete their pre-shift work activities. Moreover, Cresco allegedly rounded employees’ clock-in times to their scheduled start times, meaning the individuals were not paid for any hours worked before their scheduled start times, even if they clocked in five minutes early, the lawsuit alleges.

Per the suit, employees go through a similar process at the end of each shift, spending roughly three to five minutes doffing their PPE and storing the equipment after clocking out.

The case claims Cresco’s donning and doffing policies have also cut into employees’ 30-minute unpaid meal breaks given they’re required to return to their work stations before their breaks are over to put on a new a face mask, hair net, arm sleeves and gloves, which takes about two to three minutes each day.

The lawsuit alleges Cresco’s pay practices have resulted in workers not being paid for every hour worked, including overtime hours when they put in more than 40 hours per week. According to the case, the defendants have been well aware of their obligation to pay workers in accordance with federal and state labor laws yet willfully refused to do so:

The full complaint can be read below.

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