Two Maryland workers are suing Curaleaf, a large cannabis company that reported $1.34 billion in net revenue last year, alleging that the company created an "unlawful tip pool" where store associates had to share money they earned with their supervisors.
The two plaintiffs in the case are "budtenders" Gabriella Beck and Ronnie Matthews. Budtenders are employees who work directly with customers on the sales floor, the cash register and drive-thru windows.
Beck worked at the Reisterstown Curaleaf location from April 2024 to February 2025; Matthews has worked at the Curaleaf location in Gaithersburg since December 2021. Curaleaf also has two other stores in Maryland, in Frederick and Columbia, and dispensaries in 13 other states.
Registers at Curaleaf have tip jars for cash, and it's common practice at some of the Maryland stores, including the one in Reisterstown, for each budtender to have their own jar with their name on it, according to the lawsuit.
Read more at The Baltimore Banner