COVID Vaccines in the Cannabis Industry – Latest Cannabis News Today

As of September 2021, proof of vaccination became a prerequisite for entry into a number of businesses, social events, and activities. The rules are clear to consumers, but not to employers. When it comes to employee vaccination requirements, it is at the discretion of each employer; even with important business. The only employment sector with set rules is health care. From October 12, 2021, vaccines will be mandatory for everyone working in this field. The question arises, where exactly are all the people who work with cannabis left behind? Medicine and recreation, industries are many and each has its own level of public interaction. Here’s a look at the vaccination regulations for employees in the Canadian cannabis industry.

Events

A welcome sign of a return to normal life, cannabis events are returning! The boundaries are still tricky so participants are usually locals, but it’s a step in the right direction. In their own socially distant way, cannabis fairs are re-fueling. Every event needs to keep up to date with local public health protocols, especially if it is scheduled in multiple cities. But with proper hygiene we adapt and cannabis events can take place again.

International Cannabis Business Conference – Prior to the pandemic, the ICBC hopped from Europe to North America to connect the global cannabis business community. Your absence has been sorely missed, but luckily the conference is slowly picking up speed. Last August, the ICBC held its first personal conference in Berlin and Zurich. Future dates have so far only been announced in Germany.

MJBIZCON “THE LARGEST CANNA BIZ CONFERENCE IN THE WORLD” – MJBIZCON, held in Las Vegas, is known as the world’s largest cannabiz conference. It began in 2016 after cannabis was legalized in Nevada and has since reached epic proportions. In 2018 MJBIZCON attracted over a thousand exhibitors and twenty thousand visitors; every year it continued to grow. Forced to cancel, it will be the first to return to Las Vegas this year and the cannabis community couldn’t be more excited! MJBIZCON, which will take place from October 19-22, 2021, takes COVID-19 very seriously. The following precautions are taken so that this event can take place:

• All event staff will be vaccinated and all participants are encouraged to be vaccinated as well.
• Masks are required and this policy is enforced.
• Hand sanitizer flows like a river.
• The exhibitor spacing has been adjusted to allow for social distancing.

According to the event website, the venue, the Las Vegas Convention Center, has received GBAC STAR ™ certification from the ISSA’s Global Biorisk Advisory Council. This accreditation means that the building meets the highest standards for cleaning and disinfection protocols.

Do you remember when Craig Ex from Expert Joints continued for MJBIZCON? Remember with this video!

Provincial distributors

The BC liquor and cannabis industry is responsible for the distribution and enforcement of cannabis. Anyone who works in this field is technically a government employee. There is currently no condition of employment for public service workers to be vaccinated. The Provincial Community Security Department falls into this category and has been tasked with enforcing it. According to the current status, an unvaccinated CSU officer can report a company for violating the vaccination mandate.

Licensed breeders and producers (LPs)

Licensed breeders and cannabis producers cater to both the recreational and medical communities, but there is a great divide between them and the public.

Instead of personal recreational sales, growers and producers stock the shelves of the provincial licensed retail stores. For medical cannabis use, registered patients order directly by phone and pay by credit card. Licensed producers are designed to keep their operations private as it poses a security risk. Because of this, vaccination requirements are left to the discretion of each LP.

Licensed dealers

Provincially licensed retailers provide access to cannabis for recreational users, so their business depends on public interaction. Your consumer demographics are basically anyone and everyone above the legal age. In addition, if a medical patient does not have access to their medication, provincial retail stores should be the “Plan B” option. Because of this, these stores have high traffic from people who are immunocompromised. Although they are recreational activities, they are hugely supported by medical patients.

If someone in the cannabis industry had to get a vaccine, it would likely be someone in a provincial retail store. However, according to the mandate, this is not the case. Proof of vaccination is not required to shop, let alone work, in a retail or clothing store. As with many cannabis companies, employers can choose what type of policies make sense for them.

Gray market pharmacies

Believe it or not, there are still a few pharmacies on the gray market struggling to stay open. These places are in legal limbo and provide access to medical products and services not available anywhere else. From mild illnesses to palliative care, they are aimed at medical patients, many of whom have weakened immune systems. When it comes to creating a vaccination policy, each of these places needs to think a lot about it.

Medical establishment or retail store?

Although not yet legally recognized, compassion clubs are medical institutions. According to the health ordinance, everyone who works in a health facility must be vaccinated by October 12, 2021. In the meantime, every unvaccinated employee must be tested regularly for Covid.

The province is responsible for creating and enforcing the recreational cannabis law, but its medicinal use is outside its jurisdiction. This has caused some serious problems in the past and the provincial community security department has been a constant threat to medical compassion clubs. When it comes to corporate vaccination policies, pharmacies seem to be back in a gray area. When the province approves an organization as medical, it expects all staff to be vaccinated and can view deviations as non-compliance. However, if the store is viewed as retail then a mandatory vaccine policy could be viewed as going beyond ordering; leaving the organization alone to defend itself against any possible liability.

If you work in the cannabis industry, it is up to your employer to read the rules and interpret them to the best of their ability, no matter how blurry they may be. Companies that fail to comply with public health regulations could face fines or more, that much is clear.

Footnote (s)

https://www2.gov.bc.ca/gov/content/covid-19/vaccine/proof/businesses
https://www2.gov.bc.ca/assets/gov/covid-19/immunization/bc_vaccine_card_guide_for_businesses.pdf
https://news.gov.bc.ca/releases/2021HLTH0053-001659
https://www.mltaikins.com/labour-employment/covid-19-vaccines-mandatory-for-bc-long-term-care-workers/?utm_source=Mondaq&utm_medium=syndication&utm_campaign=LinkedIn-integration