RISE Dispensary

I worked here for a total of 4 years when I first started it was about caring for one another and it was about the people. We would care for anyone with any condition and taking the time with one on one care. That was 2020 fast forward 4 years it's now 2024. Corporate has demonstrated that it's not for the people anymore. Employees have not had any kind of wage compensation in over 4 years, corporate completely closed out medical making it just a discount and decided to tell the workers it's about getting people in and out no more personal one on one interactive care.  In this company if you aren't favored by management you get the bad treatment. The company was so bad to its employees in September of 2021 the workers opted in for a union to be put in place. After 2 years of negotiations and the company taking the time to replace each pro union team member the union was overturned in June 2024 with new staffing.  This company has a big issue with discrimination and shoving it under the rug.  I love the workers and the patients that's what made the job well worth staying. You create bonds with people you would never think you would create with.

I had a disappointing experience during my time working at this location. I was terminated following a day I had previously requested off for a doctor’s appointment—an absence that had been communicated and approved in advance. Despite this, I was later informed that my absence was being treated as a “no call, no show.”

When I sought clarification and asked to escalate the matter, I was redirected to a department that didn’t appear relevant to the situation. While I did receive an apology, I was told the decision would not be reversed.

It was disheartening to feel that a scheduling oversight may have contributed to this outcome. The situation highlighted what seemed to be a recurring issue with staffing levels, which created additional strain on operations and employees.

If you’re considering a role here, I would recommend getting clear written confirmations for any approved time off and being aware of how staffing limitations might impact work expectations.

What is the best part of working at the company?
Helping cool patients with medical needs while learning the technical side of Florida's regulated industry and state reporting protocols

What is the most stressful part about working at the company?
Sustaining solo floor operations for weeks on end without any additional staffing support or long-term relief from the upper management team

What is the work environment and culture like at the company?
Blatant favoritism and lack of professional boundaries. GM overshares intimate personal details and makes biased, unannounced schedule adjustments

What is a typical day like for you at the company?
Performing as the sole staff member for all retail and inventory tasks while management avoids the floor and fails to provide operational backup.

Not only did cc rise fire over 5 people during COVID without blinking an eye, there were lots of other shady things that happened as well. Don’t get me wrong I really loved some of the people I worked with and will always be grateful for the foot in the door to the cannabiz through rise, but man what a bunch of bs. I would not recommend them to anyone anymore with corporate coming in and changing everything. The selection use to be the best in the area and now it is overpriced and extremely minimal. They also discontinued most discounts and if you ask me that’s just a slap in the face to customers. This is a small town, word gets around fast - I have old customers hitting me up asking what the heck happened to rise and that’s super disappointing. 

Illinois has really came up with a horrible system to regulate cannabis.  What is this system?  Sell it to the highest bidder of course!  With such massive overhead to obtain their licenses Illinois dispensaries will squeeze for every cent they can get.  Many who apply for this job are idealistic and hopeful that they can create positive impact for others with this job and indeed you can.  But ultimately the company will just pocket all your hard labor without rewarding you.  If you love cannabis and believe in its power to help, don’t work here.

What is the best part of working at the company?
Some benefits. Although, at my location, they just put up one flyer and told no one. 

What is the most stressful part about working at the company?
Corporate butting into the day to day operations and throwing a rench into our work, placing difficulties on tasks that are normally accomplished with ease. Also, they softwares they use for inventory and placing orders online is atrocious.

What is the work environment and culture like at the company?
It's a mix between having fun and being frustrated because of incompetence.

What is a typical day like for you at the company?
Again, it can range from having a smooth day, to all out chaos; more the latter for some as of late.

This company is a joke 100%
expect no pay raises while the new hires piling in are getting paid the same as you at 2 years in (turn over rate is currently at 50%), there's absolutely no coverage so expect to be on your own taking on the work load of at least 3-4 other bodies. Expect that your word and feedback has no importance to them, whether it could be of actual use to them or not. Management could care if I died tomorrow, as long as their getting paid salary still, alles gut!
Medical care after you got heat exhaustion on curbside? Nope. Go home and here's a point added to your tracker while we're at it!

For some reason the company loved to brag about their billion dollar year yet their employees (especially within the Ohio medical program where we are not allowed to accept tips) could not make a livable wage. They will keep you just under full time hours so you don't get benefits. The discounts on overpriced products and the low quality home brands were laughable. We had lunch every Friday and soon after the billion dollar year was announced the company took that away because it was too expensive like they couldnt afford it.  just embarrassing. I enjoyed my store and my coworkers but the company sucks.

I enjoyed my job, but upper management and HR were a mess. There’s only room for advancement if you suck up and you’re in the right clique with the people responsible for promotions. Work/life balance was terrible and salaried management was extremely stressful with minimal support or training. The salary they pay you isn’t even much more at all than entry level when you consider the tips that hourly employees receive. Take my advice. Choose a different company. Rise pretends to be all about the people but they’re struggling as a company and that’s caused them to put profits over both patients and employees. 

The messaging around culture, DEI, and leadership sounds impressive, but the reality for many employees is very different. Support is often lacking, communication from management is minimal, and employee feedback rarely leads to real improvements.

The "work hard, play hard" mentality usually just results in overworked staff with little actual balance. What’s described as a vibrant culture often feels more like a marketing pitch than something employees genuinely experience.

If the company wants to lead in the industry, it should focus less on appearances and more on creating an environment where employees are truly heard, supported, and valued.

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