Over the past decade, the cannabis industry has exploded in popularity throughout the United States. In fact, it has become so popular that, as of 2021, it’s managed to generate no less than 428,059 jobs (and counting).
The legalization of cannabis in various states has definitely played an influential role in this, however, this growth is an indication of something much larger than law changes – the legal industry is expanding, growing and providing amazing, new job opportunities at an increased rate. All indicators of a booming industry to keep an eye on.
According to the 2022 Leafly Jobs Report, medical cannabis is a $25 billion business in the US alone. There are 428,059 legal jobs within the industry, and in 2021 alone there were more than 280 new jobs appearing every day. On top of that, the year per year growth is around 33%.
What kind of jobs tend to be the most popular?
These range from retail sales to cultivation, but the number also includes ancillary jobs. These cover construction, maintenance, security, legal aspects, HR, accounting, regulatory compliance and many others. In this number, we also cover things like industry associations, PR, tech platforms related to cannabis sales, lobbying, as well as cannabis media.
States showcasing the current market trends
The current Jobs report from Leafly covers multiple states where we can see the industry growing more and more. In Arizona, the cannabis industry generated around 2600 jobs in 2021, and they have a total of 23,333 jobs related to the industry as a whole. The cannabis market also grew in Arizona, by around 31%.
Somewhat unsurprisingly, California is the leading employer of the cannabis industry. The state itself has 83,607 jobs in the industry and $5.1 billion in sales. While the revenue growth was only 15% for 2021, a small amount in comparison to the 64% growth a year before that, the industry continues to grow and we expect this trend to continue in California for the foreseeable future.
Florida experienced a very profitable boom in medical marijuana sales, totalling around $1.5 billion. The numbers add up when you see that 200,000 residents were added to the patient list in 2021 and 399 dispensaries were registered in Q1 of 2022 alone. Currently, they host 25,895 jobs and with demand increasing, we’re marking this as a space to watch.
In the state of Illinois, the industry has $1.78 billion in products, and it supports 28,992 cannabis-related jobs. 2021 was great for the industry in this state, since all sales increased by 73%. They also have 185 more state licences ready to be issued soon. Other states like Massachusetts also managed to see an 81% sales increase for 2021, with the state supporting more than 27212 cannabis-related workplaces and generating $165 billion in sales. Then there’s New York, where we can find 2,358 cannabis-related jobs and $149 million in sales.
So, what does it all mean?
The US cannabis industry has achieved tremendous growth in 2021, and it looks like those numbers will only continue to grow. With upwards of 428,059 cannabis-related jobs and yearly revenue of $22 billion US, it’s an exciting space to watch and hopefully, a sign of societal growth that will catch on internationally.
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