Research from Glassdoor reveals that the cannabis industry is having an impact on job creation. This is based on data relating to the U.S., where state-level legalization of cannabis has spread significantly during the past year (and may well continue, given the high proportion of the U.S. population in favor of national legislation). With more opportunities for sales, firms based in the cannabis industry have expanded hiring.
The data is drawn from Glassdoor’s database of millions of job openings. This analysis reveals 1,512 cannabis industry job openings in the U.S. in December 2018, which represents a 76 percent increase compared with same period in 2017. Some studies show that the marijuana industry has created 200,000 new jobs and new opportunities are expected to grow over the next few years.
Not only are more jobs being created, some of these are more lucrative compared with other types of work. The survey reveals that Cannabis jobs pay higher than U.S. median salary. Here the median salary for cannabis industry job openings is $58,511 per year, a salary that is $5,648 higher than the median salary across all sectors ( $52,863).
In terms of other benefits, marijuana-focused recruiting company Vangst has looked at health benefits across the industry. This review found that 71 percent of cannabis jobs include medical insurance and 51 percent offer dental insurance for full-time employees. Furthermore, 46 percent of cannabis firms offer vision insurance and 29 percent offer a 401k plan – or employee stock options.
Given the higher salaries it is perhaps unsurprising that over 50 percent of the jobs in the cannabis economy are targeted at professional and technical workers, with the types of competencies required ranging from experience in marketing and accountancy, to those with knowledge of plant sciences and the environment.
Other types of skills that the cannabis industry is seeking includes those knowledgeable in business, design, technology, the culinary arts, legal support, law enforcement, plus skilled trades like air systems technology, carpentry, and electrical work.
