Spokane –With manufacturing and tourism jobs in peril on the Olympic peninsula, longtime cannabis company owner Bethany Rondeaux recently increased hours for three of her part-time employees.

“Half of my staff’s spouses have lost their jobs,” said Rondeaux, owner of Falcanna, an indoor growing business that’s been operating since November 2015.

Falcanna and hundreds of other marijuana businesses, from farm to store shelf, have been deemed essential by Washington Gov. Jay Inslee and may remain open amid social-distancing orders designed to stem the spread of the coronavirus, even as other consumer goods have been forced to shutter.

Those in the industry say they’re relieved to stay open, even as they try to answer concerns from employees and customers alike about shopping safely for a product that has yet to weather a nationwide recession.

“We are a small business, we’re not owned by multiple people,” said Justin Peterson, who owns three marijuana retail stores under the Cinder name in the Spokane area. “We’re not owned by corporations. This is my family’s only source of income.”