Caution from California on green workforce demands

Throughout the semester we've discussed the potential impact each of our proposals may have on increasing the workforce in our region so that it benefits not only the higher-skilled, higher-paying workers, but also the lower-skilled, lower-payed workers truly in need of workforce development. A new report out of California, "California Workforce, Education, and Training Needs Assessment for Energy Efficiency, Distributed Generation and Demand Response," finds that the focus going forward in energy efficiency (EE) related employment may need to be on a "significant number of unemployed and underemployed skilled workers in all of [the related] industries."

In sum, focusing our efforts to narrowly on effecting positive change in distressed areas via increased employment opportunities may unintentionally undermine the overarching goals of EE industry and employment sectors. The bullet points below, taken directly from the report's summary site, highlight both the results and recommendations we may want to consider for our UC proposal:

Report results:

•  By 2020, energy efficiency policies will result in about $11.2 billion of public and private investment, resulting in 211,000 jobs.
• Two-thirds of the jobs are directly related to energy efficiency work are in the traditional construction trades, and one-sixth are in professional jobs such as architects and engineers; only a tiny number of the jobs are in new specialized "green jobs."
• Poor quality installation of energy efficient equipment some sectors is undermining the achievement of energy efficiency goals and is directly linked to low-wage labor markets which do not reward workers or businesses for investments in training.
• California has over 1,000 training and education programs training in the key forecasted occupations, but the lack of widespread industry-recognized certifications lead to confusion and lack of coordination in the workforce development system.

Report recommendations:

• Continue and expand the state's energy efficiency policies in order to meet the state's ambitious energy efficiency goals and create good jobs.
• "Green" existing training programs for traditional occupations by incorporating energy efficiency skills and knowledge into curricula, rather than promoting stand-alone, narrowly focused green training programs.
• Use our public and ratepayer investment to promote high quality work and good careers for Californians by:

• Setting high quality skills certification standards for workers; and
• Enforcing building codes and requiring other strong quality standards for contractors.