Welcome to Senior Cannabis Digest. This week we look at job satisfaction among cannabis workers, an attempt to increase access to cannabis for veterans, a travel tip concerning Thailand and more. Enjoy.
Careers in Cannabis
There may be good news for mature consumers and others who are considering a second career in the cannabis industry. Hourly workers in the cannabis sector are among the happiest employees in the U.S.
That’s the word from Kyle Jaeger, reporting for Marijuana Moment. According to Jaeger, a key finding from a new survey from the workforce management platform Deputy is that hourly workers in the marijuana industry rank at the top of the list of “happiest” employees across multiple sectors, with more than nine in ten workers reporting a “positive sentiment” in their job.
Jaeger noted that the survey revealed that overall employee “happiness sentiment” is down to 78.5 percent in 2025 compared to 80 percent the prior year. He reported that according to the survey the most content employees work at marijuana or e-cigarette/tobacco businesses.
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.
Wrote the authors of the report, “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. For employers looking to improve sentiment, these industries offer practical lessons in team cohesion, autonomy, and culture-building.”
In his article, Jaeger reports that the survey found 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).
As always, Kyle Jaeger’s reporting is clear, concise and informative. To learn more, we urge you to read his article in the June 25, 2025 issue of Marijuana Moment.net
Cannabis and Veterans
There may be hopeful news for veterans who have had to choose between getting treatment from a VA doctor or legally using cannabis to address various physical and psychological conditions brought on by their service.
U.S. House Rep. Brian Mast, (R-Fla.), a U.S. Army veteran who lost two legs and a finger to a roadside improvised explosive device (IED) during a deployment to Afghanistan, has co-authored an amendment to the Military Construction, Veterans Affairs, and Related Agencies (MilCon-VA) Appropriations Act for fiscal year 2026 that would authorize the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to provide recommendations to veterans who want to participate in state-licensed medical cannabis programs.
Said Mast’s co-author, Rep. Dave Joyce, R-Ohio, who co-chairs the Congressional Cannabis Caucus, “My father was wounded, left for dead in World War II, and he came home. I know what it takes for these people and the hurt that they’ve gone through on behalf of their country, and they deserve every option available to bring them back to what they were before they left on our behalf.”
According to Tony Lange, who covered the story for Cannabis Business Times, the GOP-controlled House passed the underlying appropriations legislation in a 218-206 vote with two Democrats joining the majority. The bill would provide more than $152 billion in overall discretionary spending and $300 billion for mandatory programs, fully funding veterans’ medical care at $131.4 billion.
Lange notes that while the bill won’t fund medical cannabis care, Mast’s amendment would authorize the VA to provide recommendations to veterans to participate in state-licensed medical cannabis programs.
In his article, Lange makes the point that federal law forbids the Veterans Health Administration (VHA) from completing forms or registering veterans for participation in state-sanctioned cannabis programs—most of which require a doctor’s recommendation and include post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) as a qualifying condition.
Said Mast, “[Veterans] need to have the ability when they’re being seen by their primary care physician inside of the VA to have discussions about whether cannabis is or is not right for them.They need to be able to talk to their medical provider about what they fill out on the paperwork, what is the right dosage amount, how that’s going to interact with any other medications that they might be on, how it might affect their blood pressure or other things going on with them personally.”
Added Mast, “The fact of the matter is, while I have heard of many of my brothers and sisters in arms being in a state of suicide because of the narcotics they’ve been on, I’ve yet to hear about any of them attributing a state of suicide to the cannabis that they have had as a part of their life.”
The bill, with Mast’s and Joyce’s amendment, now moves to the Senate for consideration. More news as more news develops.
To learn more, we encourage you to read Tony Lange’s excellent reporting in the June 26, 2025 issue of Cannabis Business Times.com.
Tips on Trips
Mature consumers who were thinking of traveling to Thailand to experience its relaxed approach to regulating adult-use cannabis may want to rethink their travel plans.
According to staff writers for MMJDaily.com, after decriminalizing cannabis in 2022, Thailand has changed its policy and is now moving to restrict the recreational use of cannabis. Thailand was the first Asian country to decriminalize cannabis and it has been reported that decriminalization led to the growth of a $1 billion industry.
Recently, however, Thailand’s Royal Gazette website—said to be the oldest Thai journal in publication— published a new Ministry of Public Health regulation that officially reclassified cannabis flower, or bud, as a controlled herb that is available only for medical use. The regulation, which takes effect immediately, prohibits advertising, general sales and recreational use of cannabis.
ABC.net.au reports that stricter laws became politically possible after a party supporting decriminalisation left the ruling coalition after a leaked phone call about cross-border tensions with Cambodia.
Said government spokesperson Jirayu Houngsu, in a statement, “The policy must return to its original goal of controlling cannabis for medical use only.”
The Thai Chamber of Commerce previously estimated the industry, including medicinal products, could be worth $1.8 billion. Cannabis activist Chokwan Kitty Chopaka said the sector could have transformed Thai agriculture, medicine, and tourism, but uncertainty and policy reversals have eliminated the chance for any sustainable growth.
To learn more, we suggest reading the article that appeared in the June 30, 2025 issue of MMJdaily.com. MMJDaily.com is described as an online meeting place for legal & professional growers of medical cannabis.
https://www.mmjdaily.com/article/9744954/thailand-reclassifies-cannabis-flower-medicinal-use-only/?
Cannabis and Law Enforcement
Chicago police have entered a new era when it comes to enforcing cannabis laws. Officials of the Chicago Police Department (CPD) have agreed to a revision of city rules under which police officers will not be allowed to search vehicles based solely on the smell of raw cannabis.
So says Graham Abbott, reporting for Ganjapreneur.com. In a recent article Abbott reported that cannabis advocates had pursued the change under a 2019 federal court order requiring the department to reform its policies. CPD officials agreed to the rule change despite initial objections.
The American Civil Liberties Union of Illinois said in a Monday court filing that it “applauds” the department’s decision last month to adopt the policy change.
According to Abbott, CPD reported conducting just 70 traffic stops based on suspected cannabis violations from December 2024 to June 2025 — the department, however, does not track how many traffic stops occur based on the smell of raw cannabis, according to the report.
While adult-use cannabis is legal in Illinois, state law requires cannabis to be stored in a “sealed, odor-proof, child-resistant cannabis container” when being transported in a vehicle.
The CPD’s change in policy comes after seemingly contradictory rulings by the Illinois Supreme Court. In 2024 that court ruled that the smell of raw cannabis is sufficient grounds for police to conduct a vehicle search during a traffic stop. However, three months prior the same court ruled that the smell of burnt cannabis is not sufficient grounds for searching a vehicle without a warrant.
Go figure. We’re sure that somewhere Sgt. Hank Voight is shaking his head and ignoring the new policy.
To learn more, we suggest reading Graham Abbott’s article in the June 25, 2025 issue of Ganjapreneur.com.
Cannabis Quote of the Week
“If you did sell something that was 28% (THC) and there was a 25% limit, what would happen? Would it be confiscated? Would you go to jail? Would you be guillotined at dawn? Would you lose your license?
“The main problem with caps is if you put a cap on THC and there is established demand, you’ll create a parallel illegal market.
“That’s sort of defeating the purpose. You have to meet the market where it’s at.
“Once you’re there, you can use tools like progressive tax increases.”—Steve Rolles
Mr. Rolles is a senior policy analyst for the United Kingdom-based Transform Drug Policy Foundation. His comment is taken from an article Margaret Jackson penned for MJBizDaily on various strategies for implementing “caps”, or limits, on THC content in flower, concentrates and edibles.
In that article, Rolles also shared the observation, “If high-potency products are associated with greater risks, policies should strive to discourage their use or encourage lower-potency alternatives.”
In her article, Margaret Jackson does an exceptional job of illuminating various aspects of the debate on limiting THC in cannabis products. To learn more, we urge you to read her reporting in the July 1, 2025 issue of MJBizDaily.com.
https://mjbizdaily.com/are-thc-potency-caps-a-move-toward-marijuana-prohibition/
Senior Cannabis Digest is compiled and edited by Joe Kohut and John Kohut. You can reach them at joe.kohut@gmail.com and at 347-528-8753.
