The UK government has launched a national plan to recruit the workers it needs for the clean energy transition, with 400,000 extra jobs anticipated by 2030.
It identified 31 priority occupations – including plumbers, electricians and welders – as being ‘particularly in demand’, adding that five new clean energy Technical Excellence Colleges will help to train the next generation of workers.
Employment in the clean energy sector is expected to double to around 860,000 by the end of the decade, with the British government saying that by setting workforce estimates, it hopes to ‘galvanise industry, the public sector, and education providers to work together to deliver one cohesive strategy’ to invest in training up the next generation of workers.
‘A new generation’
“Communities have long been calling out for a new generation of good industrial jobs,” commented energy secretary Ed Miliband. “The clean energy jobs boom can answer that call – and today we publish a landmark national plan to make it happen.
“Our plans will help create an economy in which there is no need to leave your hometown just to find a decent job. Thanks to this government’s commitment to clean energy, a generation of young people in our industrial heartlands can have well-paid secure jobs, from plumbers to electricians and welders. This is a pro-worker, pro-jobs, pro-union, agenda that will deliver the national renewal our country needs.”
As the government noted, its clean energy mission has already galvanised more than £50 billion worth of private investment since last July. Major contributors include Iberdrola, BP, EDF, and National Grid, which have pledged their support for projects in carbon capture, offshore wind, solar and grid infrastructure.
Elsewhere, the Sizewell C nuclear power station in Suffolk, the Viking and Hynet CCUS clusters, and the Acorn project in Scotland will contribute to regional employment and training, it added.
‘Real opportunities’
“We’re giving workers the skills needed for the switch to clean energy, which is good for them, good for industry – and will drive growth across the nation,” added Pat McFadden, secretary of state for work and pensions.
“Our new jobs plan will unlock real opportunities and ensure everyone has access to the training and support to secure the well-paid jobs that will power our country’s future, as part of our Plan for Change.”
Union leaders and industry representatives have also welcomed the plan, citing the link between clean energy investment and long-term industrial renewal. As Paul Nowak, general secretary of the TUC, noted, the investment “represents a serious plan to start to rebuild our industrial heartlands and deliver quality jobs in clean energy”. Read more here.
