Legal Cannabis Jobs on the Rise in New York City

In the 1990s, Kirk Lawrence sold weed for the first time at a Far Rockaway, Queens record store, where he had to be discreet. However, he faced several arrests over the years due to police crackdowns on marijuana users, which resulted in police van rides and lockups. But now, at 45 years old, Lawrence has landed a job as a budtender at a Manhattan dispensary, where he sells cannabis openly. This marks his entry into one of the fastest-growing industries in the United States, as recreational sales of cannabis have recently launched in New York. Companies are expected to hire over the next few years to fill thousands of cannabis-related jobs.


According to CannabizTeam, an industry executive search and staffing firm, legal cannabis is estimated to generate 63,000 jobs across New York by 2025. The firm forecasts that New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut could surpass the West Coast region in sales and revenue over the next decade. This job growth would be beneficial for New York City, which has lagged behind the rest of the country in recovering employment lost during the pandemic. Most cannabis industry jobs are in retail and customer service, providing opportunities for workers who left the city's hotels and restaurants.

Lawrence is not alone in making the transition to legal cannabis. His manager, Mike Conway, worked for over a decade at Walgreens before entering the cannabis industry in 2017.

At just 38 years old, Mike Conway is now in charge of retail operations for the cheekily named Union Square Travel Agency, which recently became the fourth licensed recreational dispensary to open in the state of New York after wading through 1,500 applications. Conway spent a recent week training Kirk Lawrence and 57 other new hires, who had diverse professional backgrounds ranging from bartending and music to labor organizing and sex work.

According to industry estimates, the legal cannabis workforce in the United States has tripled over the last five years, even though the sector is illegal under federal law, highly regulated, and forced to compete with the illicit market. The rate of job growth in the industry has surpassed that of tech at its peak and continues to gain momentum, says Sinem Buber, the lead economist for ZipRecruiter. Because the industry is still in its early stages, entry requirements are low, pay is flexible, and prospects for advancement are high.

Buber adds that, in the future, more people with industry experience will be needed to keep up with the demand for legal cannabis, which is projected to increase significantly in the coming years. The slow pace of government rule-making and licensing has impeded the growth of the legal industry, while a federal decision looms over whether to legalize cannabis nationwide.

New York state policymakers and law enforcement officials are also struggling with how to reduce the illicit market, which is a critical yet sensitive task that will enable the demand for legal cannabis to continue to grow. In New York City, Mayor Eric Adams's administration anticipates that a large portion of the state's cannabis workforce will be concentrated, with job growth projected to reach approximately 24,000 in three years.

Most of the available jobs in the cannabis industry involve working directly with the plant, from farmers and chemists to retail servers who assist customers in selecting various types of smokable flowers, concentrates, and gummies. However, these businesses require a variety of other services and are expected to drive the growth of additional support roles in accounting, advertising, compliance, human resources, marketing, packaging, security, and transportation.
 
The compensation offered in the cannabis industry is quite attractive. As per the CannabizTeam report, the median salaries for full-time cannabis employees in New York are highly competitive, ranging from approximately $40,000 for plant trimmers and budtenders to nearly $100,000 for dispensary and delivery managers. Furthermore, executives working in related industries can earn salaries over $200,000.