Do 25% of Cannabis Users Really Get High Before Work?

Do 25% of Cannabis Users Really Get High Before Work?

cannabis before work

Apparently 1 in 4 cannabis users get high before work, who knew?

A recent survey found that 1 in 4 cannabis users “get high” before work. However, I think that’s a bit misleading. There is a difference between “getting high” and “taking a hit” in the morning before you set out to tackle your day.

This survey took 300 admitting cannabis consumers in 3 different states that have legal recreational marijuana on the books (totaling 900). The survey was conducted between January 8 – 14 and has an margin of error of 3.3 percent.

What the survey found was that there was an obvious spike in consumption among adults, with about 10% increase post legalization. However, they also found that the median income of the cannabis consumer was on par with that of the average nonsmoker.

The only significant difference was gender, where 60% of cannabis consumers were male. Despite legalization however, many of those surveyed still feel that there is social stigma associated with use and only 50% were open about their cannabis consumption to friends and family.

More interestingly, dispensaries had a higher “Trust level” in relation to info surrounding cannabis consumption. However, that only translated to 49% of those who took the survey. 38% said they trust their medical practitioner when it came to dispensing cannabis information.

Within consumption practices, smoking marijuana is still king. This is followed by edibles and vaping. The most significant pain point for consumers is price. 62% pointed out that price had significant influences in their buying habits. Potency came in at second with 45% of the people using this metric in deciding their buys.

One of more interesting points in the survey was that people of lower income spent more on cannabis yearly. Those who make less than $25,000 per year spent more than $500 on their weed. The higher you climb the income ladder, the lower the percentages dropped. This means, that higher tax on cannabis actually hurt lower income folks more.

Taking a toke or getting high

One can argue that there is a difference in level of impairment is directly derived on the quantity smoked. Taking a toke before work isn’t the same as smoking a full joint. Many people, like to have a quick hit before going out and facing the day.

Does this mean that they are high? Of course, there is definitely some effects obtained from taking a hit, however the high is short lived.

While this is a concern for people who are opposed to cannabis consumption, claiming that the loss in productivity could be huge, recent statistics in relation to productivity shows the opposite. It turns out that cannabis users take fewer sick days and work at a much older age. In fact, they found that those over the age of 65 who smoke cannabis had lower unemployment rates than those who don’t smoke.

This is really where the argument should be focused on – Productivity.

If you consume marijuana, yet have no difference in productivity…then it should be a problem for the company at all. Their profit margins are untouched. Of course, eating edibles before going to work will definitely affect your productivity, however a toke wouldn’t.

This is something that the survey failed to look at. “Getting high” would constitute taking a hit. However, taking a hit of weed and smoking a half a joint or a full joint are two different things. For instance, it’s similar to taking a sip of beer versus drinking the whole can. The level of impairment is relative to the quantity consumed.

Nonetheless, it isn’t recommended to smoke weed before anything really important. This is especially true if you are operating heavy machinery with a high probability of accidents.

However, working in a call center should have no effect on productivity. One could argue that being a little stoned is probably a good thing. It would keep operators engaged and able to ignore the barrage of negative replies they get from calling up unsuspecting consumers.

The point here is that 1 in 4 “getting high” is a subjective metric. What we should be looking at now is the productivity of the cannabis consumer, of which as of now…there isn’t a significant drop.

Why Smoking Weed won’t really reduce productivity

If you’ve got bills to pay, cannabis will not stop you from doing what is needed to make that happen. Unlike many other drugs, cannabis does not impair you to the point where you can’t function. It’s not like drinking a bottle of Vodka.

Furthermore, there are many people that can manage their “high” to still remain functional. I for one, choose when to smoke weed to enhance my work. When I’m writing, I tend to be sober, however, when I’m designing video, music or even building websites, it allows me to stay glued to the work for longer.

However, this comes with experience, knowing how weed affects us personally takes time, and eventually consumers level out their consumption habits and their need for work.