Green Collars the Future of Employment

Green Collars the Future of Employment

But Growth Needs Policy Support, Report Says

By Shirley Gregory

Up to 40 million Americans -- one out of every four workers -- could be working "green-collar" jobs by 2030 if the U.S. moves aggressively to support renewable energy and energy efficiency, according to a new report from the American Solar Energy Society (ASES).

The report, "Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency: Economic Drivers for the 21st Century," says public policy that "pushes the envelope" on energy -- enacting everything from incentives for renewable energy to increased funding for research and development -- could help the U.S. get 30 percent of its electricity from renewable sources by 2030. Such an approach would also help renewable-energy and energy-efficiency industries earn annual revenues of more than $4.5 trillion by then.

Last year, those industries were already earning about $970 billion a year, more than the combined total sales for Wal-Mart, Exxon-Mobil and General Motors combined, according to the report's author, Roger Bezdek, principal investigator with Management Information Services, who compiled the study for the ASES. Renewable-energy and energy-efficiency sectors also employed some 8.5 million people last year.

As defined in Bezdek's report, green-collar workers could be anybody from someone who installs solar panels on homes to accountants and truck drivers who, directly or indirectly, provide services for a green industry.

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