Cannabis Industry Experiencing Strong Job Growth, Report Finds

DENVER, CO – A new report is showing robust job growth and positive trends within the legal cannabis industry, according to PR Newswire.

The data was compiled by Vangst, the cannabis industry’s leading jobs platform, in its 2024 report that was done in conjunction with Whitney Economics.

It found that the legal cannabis industry added 22,952 new jobs in 2023, a 5.4% increase from the previous year, bringing the total number of full-time equivalent jobs supported by the industry to 440,445.

The employment growth was supported by the 28.8 billion worth of legal cannabis products sold in 2023, an increase of $2.7 billion over 2022.

The annual report examines each market’s specific regulatory environment, investment climate, cannabis license data, and past performance.

The leading states for cannabis job growth in 2023 were Michigan and Missouri, which added 10,000 jobs each.  Steady growth was reported in New York and New Jersey, which added 2,050 and 4,870 jobs respectively.

“When we started Vangst, there were less than 50,000 full-time employees in the cannabis industry. Less than a decade later, there are 440,445 full-time employees in cannabis, a number that will continue growing,” said Karson Humiston, Vangst Founder & CEO. “I am very proud of the work our team does to create the industry’s go-to-report, to examine jobs per state, something that the federal government does not do for our industry.”

Continuing moderate growth is expected in the industry for 2024, with overall revenue projected to rise by 9%.  The hottest job markets are expected to be Ohio, New York, New Jersey, and Maryland, with thousands of new hires needed.

Ten states saw negative job growth in the cannabis industry in 2023, a trend the report attributes to a saturated market and less cannabis tourism.

“Now more than ever, America’s cannabis industry is a state-by-state, region-by-region job market,” the study’s authors concluded. “Young markets in recently legalized states continue to expand and create employment opportunities, while labor demand in mature markets contracts along with revenue and profit margins.”

Vangst and Whitney Economics called the cannabis industry the fastest-growing business sector in the United States.

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