Riding the green wave to a sustainable career
October 15, 2022
Green jobs are on the rise. By 2030, according to the International Labor Organization, green jobs across the globe are expected to grow to 24 million. And in 2021, LinkedIn and the World Economic Forum reported that global demand for green skills had already exceeded supply.
Green industries and jobs present a potential solution to one of the world’s most intractable problems. How can economic and job growth be decoupled from unsustainable resource use? Yet even as green jobs offer attractive prospects, solutions for creating a skilled and equitable green workforce remain elusive.
Overall employment and economic outlook
Because green jobs are expected to grow more quickly than old jobs in legacy industries are lost, economies are expected to have higher levels of employment overall as they become greener. However, the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) has long warned that, unless proper education and workforce training are established, transitions to green industries can cause disruptions, like unemployment and lost productivity. This is a pronounced challenge in nations and regions with revenue and economies dependent on fossil-fuels.
Green economies will therefore require a rapid reskilling and upskilling of the current workforce. According to a 2017 report from the OECD, at a global level, the emergence of green industries tends to decrease demand for lower-skill jobs and increase demand for medium- and high-skill jobs, which usually require some post-secondary education or a college degree.
Industries with strongest green-job growth
Green industries that are expected to grow most quickly are in renewable energy. Solar and wind energy are at the top of the list, but other renewable energies, especially nuclear and biomass energy, are expected to employ large workforces too.
The OECD also anticipates transformations in other sectors as nations and international treaties write more stringent environmental policies, beyond climate-change mitigation. Two other major sectors expected to change are transportation and agriculture. But the OECD predicts that while green agriculture will create more jobs than conventional agriculture, these jobs will likely be lower-skill, since organic farming tends to be labor intensive.
Despite these predictions, the 2017 OECD Report on the state of green jobs globally notes limitations in data. Aside from evidence that employment in renewable energy will increase, evidence on employment effects in other industries is scarce. The OECD also critically observes that “evidence is severely lacking on the policy instruments that work best in making the green growth transition as beneficial as possible in terms of labour.”
Expansion of green jobs across new sectors
More recent data suggests that green jobs are growing in a broad range of sectors, as various companies and industries develop awareness of environmental impact and sustainability. In a report released in February, 2022, LinkedIn found that the industry with the greatest growth in global demand for green skills was fashion. LinkedIn also found that the fastest-growing green job was sustainability manager—followed by two positions in well-known high-growth green industries: wind turbine technician and solar consultant. The World Economic Forum (WEF) similarly reports that green jobs are growing not only in green energy but in fashion and finance.
Green jobs are also reaching into the highest echelons of corporate hierarchy. According to the Weinreb Group, a recruiter for sustainability jobs, the number of Chief Sustainability Officers—working in the C-suite—in the United States has increased from 29 in 2011 to 95 in 2021, an increase of 228%.
Knock-on effects of greening industries on intertwined professions
Not only will a greening economy predictably increase skills demands in green industries, like solar and wind energy, it will also produce demand in intertwined markets.
The U.S. is currently experiencing a shortage of electricians, who are essential for installing renewable-energy technologies. The causes of the shortage are complex and bear a closer look.
According to The Washington Post, retirements among electricians are outpacing new recruitment, as part of a general trend among construction trades, known as the “silver tsunami.” But the shortage has also been fueled by electrification. As more appliances and vehicles run on electricity, not fossil fuels, electricians are needed to improve electrical infrastructures. In the U.S., the recently passed Inflation Reduction Act, which provides USD $369 billion in clean energy and climate investments, is expected to increase demand for electricians even more.
Increased demand for electricians might be called a “knock-on” job-market effect of a greening economy, a kind of effect identified and predicted by the OECD. Such knock-on effects are likely to be felt broadly.
Diversity and inclusion in sustainability jobs
The electrician shortage highlights challenges too in creating equitable job opportunities in a greening economy. Electricians in the U.S. skew heavily white and male. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, in 2021, 88.3% of electricians identified as white and only 1.7% as women. Without active recruitment and training among women and people of color, a green-economy boom among electricians might only exacerbate long-standing inequalities.
While the racial and gender makeup of electricians is stark, explicitly green jobs—opposed to jobs in knock-on markets—may pose similar problems. LinkedIn reports that between 2015 and 2021, for every 100 men considered “green talent,” there were 62 women in that category—a ratio that remained unchanged during the six-year period. LinkedIn did not report on race.
Agencies offering career navigation for green jobs
Many organizations and companies are now recruiting, training, and offering career guidance for green jobs. The Environmental Defense Fund has produced a podcast mini-series devoted to helping job-seekers find green jobs. The mini-series covers a range of relevant topics, such as industries with greatest green-job growth, salary, certifications, and equity along lines of race and gender. Tufts University’s Office of Sustainability also maintains an excellent list of resources for a green job search.
Green jobs will likely continue to grow, as nations and international communities respond to climate change and preserve biodiversity. Effects on job markets are likely broad and deep and will require collaboration and innovative workforce solutions.
Back to All News & Research