Demand for Jobs and Skills in “The Green Economy”

There has been an increasing focus on the ‘green economy’ and ‘green jobs’ as governments across the world have moved to tackle climate change, and the global ‘low carbon’ economy has grown.

The Green Economy is not just about businesses and jobs that are specifically environmental; in reality, rather than there being a “green sector”, there tends to be green jobs growing within existing sectors, and even green skills being added to existing jobs.

What is a Green Job?

In 2020 the UK Government launched the Green Jobs Taskforce to support the drive for 2 million green jobs by 2030.

Green jobs are roles that contribute to preserving or restoring the environment and our planet. This could be working in a traditional sector such as manufacturing or construction, or in a new, emerging green industry such as renewable energy and energy efficiency.

As the UK economy becomes greener, some industries need help adapting their products and processes to reduce their emissions. Others are working on green technology, (for e.g., electric vehicles, LED lighting) and some are discovering completely new green activities to tackle climate change.

Benefits of working in a green job

• It’s an accessible industry – some green jobs have entry-level roles available
• You’ll have the chance to gain new skills and/or qualifications
• Future-proof your career – green skills are transferable across sectors
• You’ll help promote sustainable development and play a part in decarbonising the world economy
• Green jobs protect and restore the environment for the benefit of all

Identifying Green Occupations in London

Delivering a green economic recovery and reducing greenhouse gas emissions in pursuit of net zero could have a significant impact on London’s labour market. A variety of jobs are likely to change as the result of the transition to a low-carbon circular economy, in both the short term and the longer term.

Key findings

• There were 1.5m jobs in occupations affected by greening in London in 2019, which equates to over a quarter of all jobs (28%) in London. This figure is higher than estimates derived from other approaches.
• The rate of jobs growth in occupations affected by greening has been higher than for nongreen occupations in recent years. The number of jobs in green occupations increased by 4.1% per year from 2015 to 2019 against an average of 0.6% in non-green occupations. This suggests that the impact of greening could, to some extent, already be taking place within these occupations.
• The number of London-based jobs in green occupations is highest in the managerial, professional, and  associate professional and technical groups. 72% of jobs in occupations affected by greening were in these groups in 2017-19 and a further 14% were in skilled trades roles. While most green occupations will face changes as a result of the transition to a greener economy, this profile suggests that the need to upskill or reskill could be especially relevant to higher-skilled occupations.
•  The sectors with the highest shares of jobs in green occupations also tend to be relatively high emitting. This includes electricity and gas (70% of jobs), construction (65%), manufacturing (42%) and transport & storage (36%). At the same time, greening in London will also have a major impact on activities that indirectly support the pursuit of net zero, such as finance and professional services.
•  The transition to a greener economy will have wide-ranging and variable impacts on skills and training requirements.
• The quality of jobs is likely to vary between different green occupational categories. Overall, employee jobs in green occupations are more likely to be permanent and command higher pay than jobs in non-green occupations.
• There is scope to increase the diversity of employment in occupations affected by greening. Jobs in green occupations are more likely to be held by men than women (73% of jobs in green occupations were held by men in 2017-19) and a relatively high proportion of job holders are from a White ethnic background (74% compared to 67% for non-green occupations) with fewer from ethnic minorities.

References:

A Brief Analysis of The Green Economy, Emsi/Burning Glass

A Brief Look at Employer Demand for Jobs and Skills in “The Green Economy”, June 2021, Rob Slane, Emsi/Burning Glass

Green Jobs Taskforce | Report to Government, Industry and the Skills sector

Working Paper 99 Identifying Green Occupations in London Christopher Rocks January 2022