Report on the Green Jobs Sector

Green industry consulting firm Clean Edge Inc. has issued a report on the growth of green industry jobs: what they are, what they pay and where to find them. The study paints a picture of an invigorating industry that is growing rapidly with the help of state tax breaks and private investment ($3.1 billion in VC capital in 2008).

The report is job oriented and down to earth; for instance, it notes that one third of the job opportunities currently available in the green industry sector are for systems engineers of some sort. Further, it points out that India and China are graduating engineers as fast as U.S. universities and putting them to work.

The good news is that there are large numbers of job opportunities which do not require extensive education. The solar industry calls for manufacturing plants to produce solar cells and panels, and solar installers to build residential and commercial solar systems. Today half the solar installation work is in California due to a long-standing state tax break associated with residential solar use. That is about to change, however, as other states adopt legislation to promote alternative energy and photovoltaic (PV) cells become more effective at capturing and converting the sun’s rays

In Iowa, Texas and California manufacturing firms are turning out wind turbines for what is a rapidly expanding U.S. market. The concern about clean energy has begun to override objections to the huge turbine installations on hilltops and windy prairies.

Training for work in these facilities will probably require some training at a trade or vocational school. Solar installations must meet local electrical codes, so solar installers that have attended an electrician trade school are paid more than other crew members and site installation managers.

Not all of the industry’s needs are in plants or on worksites. The report projects a need for computer programming graduates and for alternative energy marketers. Selling residential systems in particular requires a mastery of building codes, tax breaks associated with clean energy, system design and how a solar system will pay for itself through reduced energy costs. These are technical and economic factors that are critical for a green energy sales effort.

According to the Clean Edge report there are 220,000 people employed in the various green business sectors today. That’s an extremely high number for what is considered a brand new employment niche, but it probably includes the large number of professionals working in water and sewage plants, in recycling, and in green construction – all fields where graduates of carpentry training programs and plumbing schools and HVAC training can find work today.

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