Bumpy rollout slows growth of Michigan marijuana jobs

According to the new Leafly Cannabis Jobs Report 2020, there are 8,235 people employed in the legal Michigan marijuana industry. That’s down from the previous year, according to Leafly, because “the bumpy implementation of a new regulatory system saw many formerly legal medical dispensaries drop into non-legal status. The first adult-use shops opened in late 2019, but significant parts of the state — we see you, Detroit — still await their first stores.”

At least we got a shout-out regarding the city temporarily opting out of recreational sales. While the overall picture in Michigan looks better than what we see here in Detroit, economically things aren’t nearly as rosy as they were a year ago.

“Right now, Michigan is really highly constrained in terms of access,” says Leafly senior editor Bruce Barcott. “You guys had a tough year in terms of bringing people into the new license system.”

Well, he doesn’t have to tell us that. The report helps quantify what a “tough year” means in terms of jobs, and it allows comparison to what’s going on in other places. It also measures some of the tangible impact from marijuana regulation. [Read more at Detroit Metro Times]