As recently as early 2019, the marijuana industry was viewed as the greatest job creator on this planet. According to cannabis review and rating website Leafly, there were more than 211,000 jobs in the U.S. tied to the marijuana industry, with 64,000 jobs having been added in 2018 alone.

Furthermore, with job growth of 21% in 2017, 44% in 2018, and an estimated 20% in 2019, Leafly’s projection implied cannabis employment growth of 110%, in aggregate, over a three-year span.

While this job growth appeared as if it could continue for some time to come throughout North America, the cannabis industry hit numerous snags in 2019. In Canada, regulatory-based supply issues stymied growth, while in the U.S., a combination of high tax rates in recreationally legal states and a resilient black market hampered expansion. As a result, we’ve gone from hyper-expansion mode to actually witnessing brand-name cannabis stocks laying off workers.

– Read the entire article at The Motley Fool.