Pot seller and delivery service laying off 136
A marijuana dispensary that delivers to customers in the East Bay and on the San Francisco Peninsula has laid off 136 workers, the company told a state agency.
Green Coast Management does not sell cannabis out of a physical storefront, but instead hires drivers to deliver weed orders placed via the Eaze app. The layoffs affected 115 people working as delivery drivers, according to a filing last week with the state’s Employment Development Department. The other positions terminated include case packer, fleet operations specialist and depot supervisor.
Green Coast did not give a reason for the layoffs, and its filing did not say the company is shutting down. A company human resources executive listed on the notice filed with the state said he was not authorized to speak about the matter, and an owner of the business did not respond to an emailed request for comment.
Eaze, a San Francisco software company, works with about 20 stores across the state, including three in the region that Green Coast serves, according to its website. The Eaze software allows dispensaries like Green Coast to take orders and assign employees to deliver the product. An Eaze spokeswoman said Green Coast is a business independent of Eaze.
There are around 100 retailers licensed by the Bureau of Cannabis Control to sell and deliver pot in the Bay Area, and many are hiring drivers. State regulations that took effect in January 2018 require marijuana delivery jobs be filled by regular employees, not contractors. Marijuana delivery has attracted some gig workers from Uber and DoorDash, because as company employees they can receive steady pay and benefits.
Based in Oakland, Green Coast got a temporary permit to sell and distribute marijuana in January 2018, shortly after the state started issuing licenses, according to the Bureau of Cannabis Control’s website. Its license was to expire in August.