More than three million Americans now work in clean energy, according to DOE report
National clean energy business groups applauded the results of a new Department of Energy (DOE) report, which found that the clean energy industry now supports more than three million U.S. jobs.
The second annual U.S. Energy and Employment Report found that the number of clean energy equals the number of retail jobs and is double the amount of jobs in building construction.
According to the report, almost 2.2 million work in energy efficiency, over 600,000 in clean power generation, 100,000 in advanced grid technologies, 100,000 in biofuels and 200,000 in advanced transportation, which includes hybrid and electric vehicles.
“The contributions of clean energy jobs to the country’s economy are significant and expanding,” Lisa Jacobson, president of the Business Council for Sustainable Energy, said. “The trend lines are clear: energy efficiency, natural gas and renewable energy are creating well-paying jobs and benefitting American consumers, American businesses and American manufacturers. And that adds up to one conclusion: clean energy wins for America.”
On the same day the business groups announced the employment findings, they also launched a social media campaign encouraging businesses and workers to share their employment stories. The goal of the #CleanEnergyJobs campaign is to draw attention to jobs in the growing clean energy field.
Advanced Energy Economy, American Council on Renewable Energy, AJW (representing Energy Service Companies), Alliance to Save Energy, American Wind Energy Association, the Business Council for Sustainable Energy, Energy Storage Association, and Solar Energy Industries Association are among the groups that organized the campaign.
“Today, our organizations, member companies, and their workers are celebrating all the people who make up the clean energy industries and the positive impact that we have on the U.S. economy,” Graham Richard, CEO of Advanced Energy Economy, said. “We are excited to bring visibility to our share of the more than 3 million people that work today in advanced energy across our nation.”
