moving cross country out west with no job lined up (college, minimum wage)

[dreaminofitall]

Originally Posted by brightdoglover

What is the job market like in the MJ industry, both medical and recreational?

In what capacity?

[brightdoglover]

Oh, I'm not asking for myself, but am curious about the OP's interest. I just wonder what kind of jobs the MJ industry has created.

[Vistaian]

Originally Posted by brightdoglover

Oh, I'm not asking for myself, but am curious about the OP's interest. I just wonder what kind of jobs the MJ industry has created.

There are the obvious ones, like the "bud tenders" working the retail counters of the 600+ new shops that have been licensed since retail sales were approved, but there are also jobs like these:

Construction jobs. All the spare warehouse space in Denver has already been snatched up. New ones must be built.

Electrical jobs. All those warehouses need converting into grow space.

Garden Maintenance jobs. All those warehouses need workers during all phases of the plants growth and processing.

Bud trimmers. For the plants harvested for flowers ("buds"), the most labor intensive part of the entire process is trimming the flowers before drying.

Security jobs. It's an all-cash business. Lots of security needed.

Accountants. Someone has to pay the bills and taxes with the cash, and someone has to tend to the mountain of paperwork and online filings the state requires (every plant is RFID tagged and tracked from seedling to processing into whatever product it was destined for, like edibles).

Chemists. Not only does the side of the business that creates edibles need chemists, so does the industry that is hired to test them. Making edibles is a pretty high-tech field of its own.

State Government jobs. An entire agency has been created to license, monitor, and track each event in the cannabis industry, which requires a good sized staff.

Consulting jobs. Most retailers need help through the maze, and a whole consulting industry has sprung up to fill that need. There is even a consulting industry for investors.

Then there are the jobs almost any industry creates: Janitors, Advertising professionals, Web designers, etc.

The number of jobs created is in the tens of thousands so far, and still growing.

[Count David]

Originally Posted by esteban865

and my car can't handle driving all around the west coast right now because it is at 140,000 miles and the trip out west when I move is going to be quite alot already.

I just drove my 2006 Jeep Liberty with 248K miles from Denver to Seattle (via Spokane), then down to Los Angeles (via Portland and San Francisco), then back to Denver.

With regular oil changes and good tires, your car should make it. If it breaks down, oh well, isn't moving out here a risk already?

[brightdoglover]

Thanks to the poster who detailed the jobs in the MJ industry. I did wonder.

[esteban865]

Thanks so much for everyone's input! I appreciate all of the advice that I have gotten. and the thing is that I do plan on going back to school once I can get on my feet. I just need to get out and get settled somewhere more appealing than Tennessee right now. I love Tennessee don't get me wrong but I would love to pursue my dream of working in the marijuana industry now. I need to live in the present and enjoy the time that I have as a youth. Once I am on my feet with a happy mmj job I definitely plan on going and getting my degree. working in the mmj industry will be better than waiting tables while trying to attend college for sure. And I know I can drive my car there, I just am trying to see if there are any better options. So far the only california city that looks like it will work for me is sacramento and if I visit there I can just use the public transit since it is supposed to be very good. I definitely could drive out to colorado for a visit.

[Chloe333]

Esteban, you will be fine. I say pursue your bliss. My only advice is DON'T have any babies with anyone until you are ready to support them because that makes things 1,000,000 times more difficult and complicated. So stay footloose and fancy-free and you have your whole life ahead of you to figure this out. If it's just you taking care of you, it's VERY doable!

[boulder2015]

Keep in mind, Esteban, that when the industry finally shakes itself out and governments figure out how to rightly regulate it, it will become as cheap as broccoli, lettuce, per pound, except with a little extra tax on it. At that point, it will become like any other ag job. Low-paying unless you are an expert grower, and the big corps who will dominate the space will hire up the best of those, and really won't need many. Pot is a weed and it does not take a genius to grow it. People who have been in the black market for a while are deluding themselves in thinking that the party will continue. At best, they will be competing for mininimum wage jobs with immigrant workers for giants like ADM, Con-Agra, etc.

States that try to protect the "small farmers so that the price stays HIGH" are deluding themselves and will be crushed by corporate weed. Hippies have long been in denial about this...

[esteban865]

I know exactly what you are talking about boulder2015, but if I can move within the next year I can still get in while its good. I plan on going to college and getting my degree, I just want to have some adventure in my life first. If I can get involved right now while the going is good, I can have an awesome job to help me through college.

[UKWildcat1981]

Travel the USA in a van for a summer and see if you like it, thats what I did with some friends out of college for a year. It gets old after a while but it was an amazing experience. It is best to save up at least 15 to 20k thou.