According to a new report published by Leafly and Whitney Economics, Florida expects to add 5,136 marijuana-related jobs before January 2020, representing a 50% annual increase. As of January 2019, the state employs 10,358 marijuana workers to facilitate medical access to 168,981 cannabis card holders. However, with a projected increase of 100,000 patients over the next year, Florida is bracing for a change – following in the footsteps of other sister states.
Editor’s note (3/15/19): At the time of publication, the Florida Office of Medical Marijuana Use lists 193,338 active card holders.
National Marijuana Overview
As of March 2019, 34 states have legalized the use of medical marijuana, while 10 states and Washington, D.C. have legalized the adult use of recreational marijuana.
A few highlights:
- Marijuana sales increased 34% nationwide in 2018 to $10.8 billion
- There are now more than 211,000 full-time jobs in the legal American cannabis industry
- The U.S. added 64,389 full-time marijuana jobs in 2018
For perspective, there are now more legal cannabis industry workers than dental hygienists!
Marijuana jobs far outpace other professions, as well. For instance, there are currently 52,000 coal mining jobs in the United States. American beer makers employ 69,000 brewery workers. And 112,000 people work in textile manufacturing.
In contrast, 211,000 people work in the marijuana industry. When indirect and ancillary jobs (i.e., lawyers, accountants, security consultants, media companies, and marketing firms that service the cannabis industry) are added, along with induced jobs (local community jobs supported by the spending of cannabis industry paychecks), the total number of full-time American jobs that depend on legal marijuana rises to 296,000 (well above coal, brewery, and textile jobs combined).
Florida Marijuana Job Statistics
According to Leafly and Whitney Economics, Florida added the greatest number of full-time marijuana jobs in 2018:
In Florida, the buildout of the state’s medical marijuana industry produced an enormous hiring boom.
At the end of 2017, there were 1,290 direct full-time jobs in the state’s medical cannabis industry. One year later, we count 10,358.
That hiring surge was spurred in part by a near-tripling of Florida’s medical marijuana patient population, which grew from roughly 65,000 to 165,000 in 12 months.
Florida’s addition of 9,068 jobs in 2018 represented a 703% annual increase. As stated earlier, Florida expects to register an additional 5,136 marijuana-related jobs before January 2020, putting the state on track for a 50% annual increase.
How to Get a Florida Marijuana Job
Interested in working in Florida’s growing medical cannabis industry? There are a number of options available!
Consider contacting your local medical marijuana treatment center (MMTC):
MÜV
Website: Click to visit
Phone: (813) 489-5032
Email: Available via website contact form
Columbia Care Florida
Website: Click to visit
Phone: (800) 714-9215
Email: [email protected]
Curaleaf
Website: Click to visit
Phone: (877) 303-0741
Email: [email protected]
GrowHealthy
Website: Click to visit
Phone: (863) 223-8882
Email: [email protected]
Harvest
Website: Click to visit
Phone: (407) 693-0490
Email: [email protected]
Knox Medical
Website: Click to visit
Phone: (888) 441-5669
Email: [email protected]
Liberty Health Sciences
Website: Click to visit
Phone: (833) 254-4877
Email: [email protected]
RISE
Website: Click to visit
Phone: (786) 540-4910
Email: [email protected]
San Felasco Nurseries
Website: Click to visit
Phone: (800) 429-1987
Email: Available via website contact form
Surterra Therapeutics
Website: Click to visit
Phone: (850) 391-5455
Email: [email protected]
Trulieve
Website: Click to visit
Phone: (844) 878-5438
Email: [email protected]
VidaCann
Website: Click to visit
Phone: (800) 977-1686
Email: [email protected]
Prefer to work on the physician side of things? Contact CannaMD today!
If we’re not currently hiring, we’ll be happy to keep your resume on file and be in touch if an opportunity opens up!
