Cannabis steals workers from almost every other industry

Employment growth in the US in April 2021 may not have been quite as expected with a disappointing 266,000 job spike and an increase in the unemployment rate for the first time since 2020, but the latest salary guide for the Cannabiz recruiting and recruiting firm Cannabiz team for that second quarter of 2021 tells a different story for the cannabis market.

With 320,000 full-time cannabis jobs in the US, the cannabis industry is the fastest growing industry in America. With the spread of cannabis legalization, cannabis is expected to generate sales of $ 35 billion and create 500,000 full-time jobs by 2024. Cannabiz’s report covers the growing need for skilled workforce, how this drives compensation, and how well-known MSOs are starting to look outside the industry for top dollar talent.

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Currently, adult cannabis is legal in 17 states, and DC and medical marijuana are legal in 36, with Connecticut, Minnesota, and Hawaii ready to follow suit. This means not only increased demand for products, more growing operations and manufacturing facilities going online, and more business owners applying for licenses, but more jobs around the world. Cannabiz’s Q2 Job Guide highlights where the “hot jobs” are in this expanding market, including supply chain management, large-scale cultivation, product and brand development, finance and accounting, administrative infrastructure and retail.

RELATED: Increased Demand for Top Talent as Salaries in the Cannabis Industry Continues to Rise

Cannabis salaries have risen across the board in these and other sectors, with seasoned C-suite managers and executives seeing double-digit increases. The report attributes this increase to competition and a lack of staff with specialized cannabis experience or transferable skills.

New hires from outside the industry come from all parts of the US economy, particularly the food and beverage, pharmaceutical, agricultural, medical, CPG, technology, and retail sectors. John Deere, Proctor and Gamble (NYSE: PG), and Tesla are among the largest companies in the country, with multi-state cannabis operations recruiting.

Unsurprisingly, California ranks first with 58,000 cannabis jobs, while Colorado and Florida come almost second with 35,000 and 31,000 cannabis jobs, respectively. Oklahoma and Pennsylvania bottom the list of “Top Cannabis Jobs” by state at 17,000 and 16,000 respectively.

RELATED: 32% Cannabis Employment Growth In 2020 Despite COVID-19

With a cannabis company’s chief financial officer earning over $ 400.00 per year according to data from Cannabiz, it’s easy to see where those double-digit gains are falling, especially since jobs in public retail, for example, for a budtender, peaking at around 40,000 US dollars per year. There has also been a rise in low-wage jobs, albeit in the single digits – a gap that appears to be narrowing and keeping the cannabis industry momentum on the back of legalization, investment and expansion.

This article originally appeared in the Green Market Report and was republished with permission.