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Proposed Government Program Would Require Training For Weed Workers

Proposed Government Program Would Require Training For Weed Workers
Green Rush Daily

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Proposed Government Program Would Require Training For Weed Workers

CityGrow is attempting to educate the future workers of the cannabis industry.

The city of San Francisco is taking steps to make the legal cannabis industry more equitable when it comes to hiring and labor practices. A new proposal calls for the creation of programs to provide training for weed workers. If the proposal passes, weed businesses in the city would be required to hire workers from this training program.

San Francisco’s New Cannabis Labor Proposal

The proposal was introduced recently by San Francisco Supervisor Ahsha Safai. He presented the plan as a way to make it easier for disadvantaged workers to get job training and to increase their chances of getting hired in the legal marijuana industry.

As explained by Safai, the proposal would create a program to train weed workers. More specifically, the job training program would serve primarily underserved communities.

Students in the program will learn how to fill a number of roles in the legal cannabis industry. At this point, Safai said he anticipates the program training people in the cultivation side of the industry.

Additionally, he said the program could also provide training for other aspects of the industry. This could include things like packaging and shipping, as well as retail.

Safai’s proposal won’t only provide job training. It will also go a step further by making it easier for people in the program to get hired.

As reported by local news sources, the proposal would also require that 35 percent of new hires at cannabis businesses in San Francisco to come from the new job training program.

Mandatory Training For Weed Workers

The proposal is currently being called CityGrow. It is reportedly modeled after a similar job training program called CityBuild. Currently, CityBuild is operated by San Francisco’s Office of Economic and Workforce Development (OEWD).

CityBuild serves disadvantaged workers. In particular, it gives people job training and apprenticeship experience in the construction industry. From there, the program helps move graduates of the training program into full time jobs.

As conceived by Safai, CityGrow would work pretty much the exact same way. For starters, the proposed program would also be administered by the city’s OEWD.

To ensure that the job training program prepares students for the legal cannabis industry, CityGrow plans to construct a focused curriculum. In particular, the program would turn to a group of experts to figure out what to teach. That group would include industry players, cannabis business owners and employers, and labor unions.

So far, Safai’s proposed CityGrow has been received fairly optimistically. For example, many involved with issues surrounding labor rights see the idea as a potentially effective way to address social, political, and economic inequities.

As for the cannabis industry itself, there is reportedly some hesitancy. In particular, some business owners have expressed dismay at having to deal with yet another requirement. Further, some have said that it’s already difficult to keep up with California’s cannabis regulations, many of which which were recently overhauled.

It’s unclear how long it would take for CityGrow to go into full effect. Under current laws, all businesses in San Francisco with more than 10 employees are required to have a Labor Peace Agreement. If it becomes a reality, CityGrow would build on already existing labor regulations like this.

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