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Help us identify ways to turn today’s environmental challenges into job-creating and economic opportunities!The transition to a cleaner economy will require vast deployment of renewable energy sources like solar and onshore wind power.
The Challenge
According to the 2023 United States Energy and Employment Report, clean energy technologies—like solar and wind—accounted for more than 84% of net new electric power generation jobs from 2021 to 2022.
Unfortunately, we have seen that these sectors have lower unionization rates than traditional energy generation sectors. For example, the 2023 USEER reports that workers in the coal electric power generation industry have a 17% unionization rate, while workers in the wind industry have a 12% unionization rate.
The Opportunity
Recent efforts to improve job quality in these rapidly growing industries are promising. Notably, the Inflation Reduction Act—a historic law to revitalize U.S. manufacturing, grow clean energy, and support and create good union jobs across the country—for the first time ever, includes high-road labor standards that go hand-in-hand with clean energy deployment.
Including high-road labor standards in efforts to support the build out of renewable energy is significant when considering that on the whole, high-road and union jobs pay better, have better benefits, and are safer than non-union jobs. Workers who are members of or are represented by a union earn significantly more than those who are not across all relevant industries and occupations, with especially pronounced benefits for low-wage workers. Taking a deeper dive into specific sectors, we see that on average union members earn a premium of 15% higher wages than non-union workers in the utilities sector and 45% higher wages in the construction sector.
Key Facts
5 Million Jobs The Inflation Reduction Act’s investments to accelerate clean energy deployment are estimated to create nearly 5 million jobs over the next decade. (Source)
$127 Billion The Inflation Reduction Act includes four clean electricity tax credits worth more than $127 billion. (Source)
30% Bonus Tax Credit The Investment and Production Clean Energy Tax credits include a ‘bonus’ credit if prevailing wage and registered apprenticeship requirements are met. Under the Investment Tax Credit, this ‘bonus’ credit is worth up to 30% of the project cost. (Source)