Kaitlin Domangue
As the world is seemingly closed for business, many business owners find themselves in hot water. According to Liesl Bernard, CEO, and founder of cannabis staffing agency CannabizTeam, the cannabis industry is not one of those businesses. Being coined as “corona stress disorder”, people are turning to cannabis products to ease their anxiety over the current state of the world. And since everyone is at home, people are running through their products at a much faster rate than usual.
Bernard tells Green Market Report, “There has been a rise in hiring temporary employees in the cannabis industry, even with COVID-19 looming over the economy. Across the board, our clients are looking for extra support. Last month, we saw a 100% increase in temporary staffing, and we’re still getting plenty of clients who need temps. Our top temp positions are warehouse technicians, budtenders, extraction technicians, and dispatch managers.”
Bernard explains that the drastic changes to our everyday lives coupled with the uncertainty of the future is leading to high stress and increased need for cannabis. “Naturally, people are turning to cannabis to relieve their anxiety. Cannabis users are stockpiling and purchasing even more cannabis than ever before to cope with their worry and fear, so cannabis companies have to rise to the occasion.” Bernard tells us that he believes users are purchasing a mix of different products, “but flowers and edibles are at the top of the list.” He said, “Out of the main sectors of the industry, I would say that manufacturing and retail have the most need for staff right now.”
Bernard and the CannabizTeam are confident the cannabis industry will grow to become stronger than ever before when we come out on the other side of this global crisis. “It’s an industry that’s used to making adjustments and pivoting, so I see it prospering even more once we get past the coronavirus pandemic,” said Bernard. “I also remember reading a recent report from New Frontier Data, stating that 72% of leading industry stakeholders expect the cannabis industry to grow in 2020. Staffing needs will still be there once this is all over, and we’re going to be here to make the right connections.”
Bernard says that while temporary staffing is taking the lead, the company is still continuing to recruit executives for cannabis companies. “We have businesses that are making offers to executives, and they’re still moving forward with video interviews.”
