The US clean energy industry ended last year with the fewest number of workers since 2015, as impacts of the coronavirus pandemic mean 12% of the sector’s workforce is unemployed.
Three months of marginal job creation means nearly 500,000 clean energy workers in the US remain unemployed as the sector struggles to recover from the impact of COVID-19.
The recovery of clean energy jobs in the US slowed a trickle last month as trade associations have warned it could take years for jobs to return in full without support from Congress.
New York Governor Andrew Cuomo has announced the largest combined green energy solicitations ever issued in the US, seeking up to 4GW of renewable capacity to combat climate change.
Additions have been made to support action on climate change through federal tax incentives in the proposed Congress bill to invest US$1.5 trillion in infrastructure across the US.
Sector sheds in two months twice the workers it had gained over two years and could see cumulative losses of 850,000 by 30 June, according to latest update by E2, ACORE and others.
Badly hit by the COVID-19 crisis, New York State has opted to “dramatically speed up the siting and construction of clean energy projects” as one facet of its plans for economic comeback.
New census figures from the Solar Foundation show that US solar industry grew by 5,600 jobs last year, reaching nearly a quarter of a million positions across the nation.
Switching to full renewables by 2050 in line with climate goals would see global solar create 22 million of a total 35 million new energy sector jobs, with batteries employing 4.5 million.
Official stats find 210% rise in large-scale PV workforce in past two years but associations warn rules for mandatory electricians could stifle growth.
PV inverter supplier SMA Solar is to lay off 425 full-time staff and discontinue China as a location as part of a restructuring plan announced in September in order to return the company to profitability quickly.
The distributed renewable energy (DRE) sector, necessary in a world with millions of people without power, is being held back by a chronic shortage of skilled workers. Indeed, Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding South Africa) has just 16,000 people working in renewable energy in a region with 600 million un-electrified people, according to the founders of a new campaign aiming to fill this skills gap.
India’s 175GW by 2022 renewable energy target could create up to 330,000 jobs in the next five years, predominantly in the rooftop PV sector, according to a report from India's CEEW and NRDC.
This week's Movers & Shakers covers both expansions into new territories and new business ventures. A long-term member of the Nevada Public Utilities Commission resigns, while the SEIA gains two new board members. Also, GRID Alternatives and Washington DC launch a new solar training programme for low-income residents.
GRID Alternatives Mid-Atlantic, a subsidiary of the US’ largest non-profit solar installer, is launching its national Women in Solar programme – an effort to increase gender diversity in the solar supply chain – with the help of the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA).
