Marijuana businesses are truly “essential”
For decades, April 20 has been recognized as an unofficial marijuana holiday in Colorado and around the country. While this year’s “4/20” may not be marked by large public rallies or concerts due to enduring COVID-19 safety restrictions, there are plenty of reasons for the cannabis community to celebrate — including recent legalization announcements in New Mexico, New York, and Virginia — and for cannabis industry workers to be recognized.
Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, the risks and sacrifices of frontline workers to help others have been celebrated and praised with red hearts in windows and yard signs thanking hospital workers and those who provide our groceries and public services. These folks absolutely deserve our praise and gratitude. Additionally, though, there is a group of more than 320,000 “essential” workers across the U.S. who’ve endured risks and sacrifices to help others: the people who grow, process, package, test, and sell legal cannabis.
In 2020 the cannabis industry was the fastest-growing industry in the U.S., despite the crippling economic effects of pandemic-related closures and quarantines. According to the Leafly 2021 Jobs Report, the cannabis industry added more than 77,000 jobs, marking a 32% increase from
2019. Astonishingly, cannabis workers now outnumber dentists, EMTs, and electrical engineers in the U.S., and cannabis sales are providing a valuable and consistent source of new tax revenue to struggling state and local economies.
Last spring, state and local governments across the nation deemed cannabis operators “essential” or “critical” businesses, authorizing them to remain open throughout the pandemic as long as they followed physical distancing and other public health guidelines. The “essential” designation was both a welcome lifeline for an industry frequently deprived of many of the benefits and resources enjoyed by other legal businesses, such as banking, insurance, and small business loans, and a milestone in the fight to destigmatize the industry.
The “essential” designation also came at just the right time, as state-legal cannabis businesses were not eligible for federal COVID-19 relief dollars due to the cannabis plant’s federally illegal status. Nevertheless, state-licensed cannabis companies across the country continued meeting patients’ and adult consumers’ needs throughout the pandemic, while also employing thousands of essential workers and generating much-needed tax revenue for state and local governments.
Despite their contributions to their local economies and communities, cannabis workers are generally not treated like employees working in a legal industry. Simple things that essential workers in other industries may take for granted, such as direct deposit of their paycheck into a bank account, are still off-limits to cannabis workers, again due to the plant’s federally illegal status.
There is hope, though, for the businesses and people who work with cannabis: The Secure and Fair Enforcement Banking Act, also known as the SAFE Banking Act, was reintroduced last month with bipartisan support and passed in the U.S. House Monday night. Expected by many inside and outside the cannabis industry to pass, the Act would ensure businesses and their employees access to traditional banking services, such as checking and savings accounts and mortgages and debit cards.
Needless to say, cannabis has come quite a ways since city and university officials did everything they could to shoo away 4/20 crowds. And on 2021’s unofficial cannabis holiday, I invite you to visit one of the nearly 30,000 cannabis businesses operating across the U.S. and take a moment to recognize the unique sacrifices cannabis industry workers make. Say “thanks” to these workers who serve medical marijuana patients and adult-use consumers, and who are driving our economy while providing us with a valuable plant product in times of need.
And maybe pick up some product to share with the other essential workers in your life who deserve a break!