Marijuana Industry Workers Are The Happiest In Any Job Sector In The U.S., Survey Finds
From toxifillers.com with love
Hourly workers in the marijuana industry rank at the top of the list of “happiest” employees across multiple sectors—with more than 9 in 10 reporting a “positive sentiment” in their job—according to a new survey.
The annual Shift Pulse Report from the workforce management platform Deputy gauged how hourly workers felt about their jobs in 10 common industries—from cannabis to cleaning services to firearms.
While the overall finding of the report is that American workers are becoming less happy, with the happiness sentiment down to 78.5 percent in 2025 compared to 80 percent the prior year, the sector with the most content employees work at marijuana or e-cigarette/tobacco businesses.
A total of nearly 92 percent of cannabis and tobacco hourly workers said they feel positively about their jobs. By contrast, that sentiment is shared by 91 percent of hourly employees at catering, 90 percent in cafes, 90 percent of those in dentistry, 89 percent in gyms, 87 percent in firearms, 86 percent in sit-down restaurants, 84 percent in cleaning services and 83 percent in childcare.
“This may reflect stronger workplace culture and wage competitiveness in newer, regulated industries that prioritize employee retention as they scale rapidly,” Deputy said.
It’s also notable that cannabis sector hourly workers report higher levels of happiness in their trade considering that the industry faces unique challenges under federal prohibition, which has included an outsized risk of being targeted in robberies since many marijuana businesses operate in a largely cash-based environment.
“This year’s happiest industry sectors reveal a growing trend: purpose, predictability, and a sense of control over one’s workday matter just as much—if not more—than prestige or pay alone,” the report says. “For employers looking to improve sentiment, these industries offer practical lessons in team cohesion, autonomy, and culture-building.”
The “unhappiest sectors” among American hourly workers are those in pharmaceuticals (14 percent), delivery and postal services (14 percent), animal health (12 percent), doctor’s offices (12 percent), outpatient care centers (10 percent) and other hospitality services (8 percent).
“The 2025 Shift Pulse Report reveals sharp divides across the U.S. in how shift workers feel about their jobs—with sentiment driven not just by geography, but also by local economic conditions, industry makeup, and cultural attitudes toward work,” Deputy said.
“For employers and policymakers, this is a call to action: where people live still heavily influences how they feel about the work they do—and no single national strategy will solve for sentiment without considering these local realities,” the report concludes.
The report is based on an analysis of 1,515,790 Shift Pulse survey responses submitted by shift workers across the U.S. between April 2024 and April 2025.
Marijuana workers might rank among the happiest among various sectors, but they’re not without their set of challenges. Beyond the limited banking issue, there has also been a push to ensure that these employees are able to enter into labor peace agreements—a policy that’s been built into legalization laws in several states.
A federal judge recently struck down a voter-approved Oregon law that required licensed marijuana businesses enter into such agreements with workers and mandated that employers remain neutral in discussions around unionization.
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