As Head of HR for a cannabis company, you have many responsibilities. From understanding the nuances of a highly regulated industry to ensuring payroll compliance, every day brings new challenges. One of your most important duties is to retain your employees, but that’s much easier said than done.
High turnover rates affect cannabis businesses nationwide, and one of the most important things you can do to keep your employees is to offer competitive benefits.
Doing so, however, requires time and effort to find the right plans, determine the benefits you will offer, and administer them in accordance with complex laws and regulations. Knowing where to turn can make a difference in your ability to help reduce your company's turnover and retain top employees.
What Makes Cannabis HR Benefits so Unique?
While some states have had legal recreational marijuana for many years, the industry is in constant flux and faces frequent regulatory changes. That can make operating a cannabis company quite challenging.
Managing money can present challenges, too. And not just for how to get paid from customers, but also how to pay your employees and provide benefits. Because marijuana is still illegal at the federal level, many national banks have refused to handle cannabis company's accounts.
Some companies are forced to operate fully in cash, which can present even more legal hurdles. Other companies use local credit unions or state-managed banks. Whatever path you take, it can make it difficult to provide the benefits your cannabis employees seek.
The Challenges of Employee Retention
Because employees in the cannabis industry tend to value healthcare benefits more than other industries, failing to provide your team with the benefits they're looking for may have negative consequences. If employees do not have access to the benefits they want — including access to quality and affordable healthcare plans — they may leave. High turnover not only makes your job more difficult, but it can also be extremely costly.
Turnover costs can bankrupt businesses, especially in the still-evolving cannabusiness industry. In general, you can assume it will cost your company about twice the salary of a departing employee to replace them. Most small businesses would have a hard time shouldering that financial burden, let alone cannabusinesses that face high regulation.
To help combat these issues, you need a partner you can trust, one that understands the unique challenges you face in the cannabis industry. But you also need a partner that can help you get access to and provide the benefits your employees desire.
This is where cannabis PEOs come into play. PEOs make it easy for cannabis companies to outsource HR responsibilities, including benefits administration, to ultimately improve organizational efficiency and allow business owners to focus on improving their bottom line.
Are Your Benefits Keeping Employees Around?
Every employee seeks company benefits of all kinds. From paid time off to company events, employees desire a culture they can latch onto. Topping the list of benefits employees seek most is healthcare.
Health Insurance
In the U.S., healthcare is tied to employment. Employees expect their employer to shoulder at least some of the cost of healthcare to reduce organizational expenses. But they also expect to have access to quality healthcare plans. If you're offering healthcare but have few employees enrolled, the plans may not be what your team needs because the premiums are too high or the coverage is not good enough.
401(k) and Retirement
A 401(k) and other retirement plans are also important components of your company benefits package. Even young employees want to plan for their future and ensure they have what they need to retire comfortably and at a reasonable age. While it may not be the most important benefit to your team, offering retirement plans can give your company a competitive edge.
Competitive Compensation
Understanding what your competitors pay can give you a leg up during the hiring process. Ensure that you're paying comparable salaries and offering other competitive benefits that make it impossible for candidates not to choose you.
Training and Development
Employees want to succeed; they want to grow. Show them that you value them by helping improve their careers through training and development programs. Developing this type of program, however, is time-consuming. Having a trusted partner help you create and manage your training and development programs will not only ensure they get done and stay updated but that your programs are also legally compliant.
Benefits Administration
The vast majority of companies realize they need to prioritize people analytics, but very few feel ready to do so. If you're in this same boat and recognize the value of your employees but don't feel ready or like you have the time to manage the process alone, partner with a cannabis PEO company that can help you simplify the benefits administration process.
In addition to payroll and back-office administration, cannabis PEOs can help you find, implement, and administer top-quality employee benefits.
Bottom Line
To be effective at attracting and retaining top talent in the cannabis industry, you need to understand the benefits your employees want. But being in the cannabis industry also means you have hurdles to implement and administer those benefits that other industries do not face.
Through a partnership with an experienced cannabis HR benefits provider, you can overcome these challenges that will reduce your company's turnover and give you a competitive advantage, ultimately helping you build the company culture you want.
With Teamployer, you can expect to shed some of your HR administrative burdens so you can focus more on your team and your bottom line. We offer you competitively priced, customized solutions to help you achieve your goals while ensuring your company remains compliant with ever-changing state and federal cannabis regulations.
Contact us today to learn more about the solutions we can provide you.
