Medical marijuana industry creates jobs

Trulieve is a local company with multiple job opportunities available in the medical marijuana industry.
Photo Courtesy of Truelieve. 

Since the passing of an amendment in 2016 that legalized medical marijuana in Florida, a blossoming industry has led to the creation of a multitude of new jobs.

It’s not just doctors prescribing the medicine, there’s a whole process behind growing and distributing the healing plant.

A career in medical marijuana can consist of anything from a physician to driving around as a delivery man.

Take the local company Trulieve, for example. As a local dispensary in town it has a number of different positions and employees working for it, and the company is still looking for more.

Currently listed on their website is a rundown of more than 40 different positions that they are looking to hire.

The Trulieve grow facility is located in nearby Quincy, less than a half-hour drive from Tallahassee. The grow facility is a major operation that runs 24 hours a day and grows all of the medical marijuana that the dispensary distributes.

The greenhouse buildings look like warehouses and inside are scientists and expert grow technicians who have years of experience in botany. The company takes their business quite serious by only allowing employees and those who’ve been granted access through the security gates.

A friendly security guard who sports a Trulieve beanie mans the gate. From the gates you can smell a hint of the aroma from the plants; operations appear busy.

Although some of the higher up positions, like an extraction technician, a position that removes the actual product from the plant, call for a bachelor’s or an associate’s degree, many of the jobs only need a high school diploma or GED to qualify for work.

An entry level greenhouse agricultural specialist is one of the jobs that doesn't require a degree. Some of their duties include working in the greenhouse, watering the plants and being attentive to any special needs one plant might require.

This is huge because it provides full-time work opportunities to those who may have a strong work ethic, but can’t find employment due to the lack of a college degree. Going to the careers tab on Trulieve’s  website could potentially result in a secure gig and they provide a solid rundown of what each position requires on a day-to-day basis along with the qualifications.

It’s worth taking a look into the opportunities available and as the industry continues to grow in Florida, so will the jobs.