Workplace Law Partners attorney John Kunze was interviewed by Law360 Employment Authority for "Tip Law For Cannabis Workers Arrives As Case Count Rises" (Max Kutner, September 24, 2026). The article looks at the growing number of legal fights over tips in the cannabis industry.
The article centers on a new Connecticut law, effective October 1, 2026. It bars cannabis establishments, dispensaries, and producers from counting workers' tips toward the minimum wage. Connecticut cannabis employers can no longer pay a reduced "tipped" wage and rely on customers' tips to close the gap. Budtenders and other cannabis workers must be paid the full state minimum wage, with tips on top.
The law arrives as tip-related lawsuits against cannabis businesses continue to climb. Dispensary workers in Illinois, Michigan, New Mexico, and other states have sued over tips allegedly taken by managers, tip pools shared with supervisors, and tip money used to cover business expenses. The attorneys Law360 spoke with tied the trend to the industry's rapid growth and its unusual regulatory landscape.
Kunze told Law360 that:
"Restaurants have been around for hundreds of years," said John Kunze of Workplace Law Partners, who has represented dispensary workers. "People that are in management and ownership positions there are aware of these tip pool laws."
But with "the cannabis industry being so new, I'm wondering if these people are aware that you can have a tip pool and lots of employees can participate, but if you're a management-type employee, you can't," he said.