Jake Heimark, co-founder and CEO of Plus Products, has outlined the measures the California-based cannabis edibles producer has taken to protect employees and customers during the COVID-19 outbreak.

“We are seeing federal, state and local guidance that is quickly adapting to meet this unique crisis,” Heimark wrote in an open letter. “At PLUS, we are quickly adapting and rolling out new policies and procedures to match these directives, while always focusing on our top priority: protecting the health and safety of our employees and our customers.”

Heimark noted on March 3, PLUS moved all internal-only meetings that required travel to virtual sessions. A week after, the company banned all internal and external visitors to its manufacturing facilities with the exception of government officials. 

On March 18, PLUS adopted mandatory work-from-home policies for all its offices and field employees. The company has shut down manufacturing operations in Nevada until further notice and has created an “isolation pod” around its main manufacturing facility in Adelanto, California. 

PLUS has asked those who are in sensitive groups to stay home and has suspended its caps on sick leave for the duration of this crisis. The company’s HR and operations team, with the help of its health insurance providers at East West Administrators, have been working to make sure it meets the childcare, elderly care and other needs of all of its employees.

“As a food company, our first thought and actions were to protect physical health and safety,” Heimark wrote. “Our operations have always had best-in-class personal protective equipment, food safety and hazard control programs, and we were prepared to quickly adjust to this crisis. Now, our management team is focusing on addressing the mental health and safety of our employees and partners. It appears this is only the beginning of what will be a protracted battle with this virus. We rarely discuss mental health in this country, and a lot of people are feeling quite a bit of unease with this crisis. We are doing what we can to help.” 

On March 16, PLUS hosted a “lunch session” where employees logged into a video conference room to spend time with one another. They had a second session March 18.

“They seem to be keeping morale high,” Heimark wrote. “We are checking in with our partners on both sides of our supply chain to make sure that they are also taking care of one another.”

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