Organigram Holdings Inc. is temporarily laying off nearly half of its staff due to COVID-19, the latest such move by a Canadian cannabis producer impacted by the pandemic.

In a release late Monday, Organigram said it would temporarily reduce its workforce by 45 per cent, representing about 400 of its employees, to help contain a potential spread of COVID-19. 

"These are unprecedented and trying times," said Greg Engel, chief executive officer of Organigram, in the release. "Our priority right now is to make sound strategic decisions that are in the best interests of our people and which will contribute to the long-term sustainability of the company."

The efforts of front-line retail and production staff at Delta 9 Cannabis Inc. are being recognized with extra pay.

As essential workers across the continent grapple with employers to ensure safety and be fairly compensated for extra hours and increased health risks, the Canadian cannabis company is initiating a “grateful pay.”

With company operations remaining open during the coronavirus outbreak, an extra $2 an hour has been instituted for staff who “continue to work during this difficult time,” notes a statement from Delta 9.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced that more help is on the way for small and medium-sized businesses that have been upended by COVID-19 on March 27. 

For employers that qualify, the businesses will be eligible to have up to 75 per cent of its payroll covered, in addition to access to interest-free loans. 

“Our hope is that employers being pushed to lay off people because of COVID-19 will think again,” Trudeau said.

For the ailing cannabis sector, which was already on shaky ground before the pandemic took hold, this is good news for those that qualify. But what about cannabis employees that have already been laid off amid the pandemic? What supports can they fall back on?

The Green Organic Dutchman (TGOD) is the latest Canadian cannabis company to scale back its operations in light of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Toronto-based cannabis producer said in a statement late Wednesday it will postpone production at its facility in Valleyfield, Que. and temporarily lay off staff, but noted it intends to restart its operations later this year. The company will also reduce salary by 20 per cent for its salaried employees and 30 per cent for certain executive staff and place a freeze on hiring and consultancy work.

"Multiple factors, most particularly the COVID-19 pandemic, are contributing to an environment in which we must be extremely prudent with how we manage our cost structure," said TGOD chief executive officer Brian Athaide.

As the legal marijuana business continues to expand, staff at one Canadian cannabis company are looking to unionize in what would be a first in the country’s legal pot industry.

International labor union United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW) has been in contact with workers at Ontario cannabis producer WeedMD to start negotiating contracts, according to national representative Kevin Shimmin.

The GrowthOp reached out to an illicit cannabis worker to find out what safety measures are in place for employees to manage the risks of the coronavirus. Here’s what they had to say.

To mitigate the financial strain COVID-19 and social distancing has placed on Canadians, the government has announced greater eligibility for EI and other financial breaks in the weeks and months to come. But these measures don’t offer much to those employed in an illegal capacity, like the very active illicit cannabis market. As someone who is currently employed by an illicit Toronto cannabis organization, I am acutely aware of the dangers of continued exposure to this virus in the workplace. 

hree members of Parliament and 74 Canadian cannabis industry professionals are calling on the federal government to include the cannabis sector in Ottawa’s COVID-19 relief funds.

Last week, Tantalus Labs CEO Dan Sutton tweeted the cannabis industry was being excluded from the federal government’s $10 billion in loans to support the Canadian economy.

On Thursday, Vancouver Kingsway MP Don Davies sent a letter to Minister of Finance William Morneau calling the exclusion “economic stigmatization” while urging for federal support of the cannabis industry. The letter was co-signed by MP Nathaniel Erskine-Smith and MP Scott Reid. All three MPs co-chair the Parliamentary Cannabis Caucus. 

The COVID-19 pandemic is shuttering businesses across the country, but the Canadian cannabis sector continues to be left out of economic relief plans. 

Earlier this month, a senior account manager from the Business Development Bank of Canada (BDC) notified Dan Sutton, the CEO of Vancouver’s Tantalus Labs, that “we do not do business with cannabis firms at the time.” The news came after the BDC and the Export Development Canada (EDC) had announced additional loans and liquidity were coming for Canadian businesses. 

Last Thursday, the co-chairs for the Parliamentary Cannabis Caucus wrote a letter to Finance Minister Bill Morneau asking the federal government to include the Canadian cannabis sector in Ottawa’s plans. 

Canadian-based Organigram Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ: OGI) (TSX: OGI) gave

More bad news could be on the horizon for the Canadian cannabis industry. 

On Monday night, Dan Sutton, the CEO and founder of BC-based cannabis cultivator Tantalus Labs, tweeted that a senior account manager at the Business Development Bank of Canada — a Crown corporation mandated to help develop small and medium-sized companies through financing and other means — had notified them that they would not be providing relief to the cannabis sector.

As cannabis companies are increasingly feeling the impact of the pandemic lockdown with temporary layoffs and store closures, cash flow interruptions could lead to permanent closures for some businesses, Sutton said.