Cannabis companies seeking short-term help have plenty of options

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employing temporary marijuana workers, Cannabis companies seeking short-term help have plenty of options

(This is an abridged version of a story that appears in the September issue of Marijuana Business Magazine.)

The gig economy has permeated U.S. culture as companies such as Uber, Lyft and DoorDash offer people a way to make a living while offering services that customers demand.

Approximately 41 million U.S. citizens work as consultants, contractors, freelancers and temporary or on-call employees, a sector that generated $1.28 trillion of revenue for the American economy last year, according to a report by MBO Partners, a Virginia-based management services company.

The abundance of such workers is a plus for the marijuana industry, where companies often employ temporary employees.

Short-term workers typically are available through employment agencies that specialize in offering such labor to marijuana businesses.

Instead of incurring the costs associated with a full-time employee – think workers’ compensation, payroll paperwork or payroll taxes – cannabis companies might offer a premium hourly wage to the employment agency.

Two other benefits to hiring temporary workers when business is strong: Short-term employees can be released when business slows, and companies can convert proficient part-time laborers into full-time staffers.

Hiring experts contacted by Marijuana Business Magazine offered the following tips on how to go about finding part-time workers.