Employment in the Green Economy
In response to growing concern about climate change and its potential effects, a “green” economic sector is growing rapidly in California to provide consumers with products and services ranging from solar panels to plug-in hybrid cars to environmentally certified building materials. The State of California has a strong history of policies to promote energy efficiency and renewables, and is about to implement the strongest anti-global warming legislation in the country, the Global Warming Solutions Act (AB 32, 2007). At the local level, cities and counties are developing initiatives to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions and attract new business in emerging technologies, such as the East Bay Green Initiative recently proposed by the mayors of Oakland, Emeryville, Berkeley and Richmond.
Employers, economic development planners, workforce professionals, educators, and unions want to know what these new policies and the new green economy will mean for them. Affected industries will include cement manufacturing, oil refining, steel production, construction, solar electronics, energy generation, heating, ventilation and air conditioning, plumbing, and many more. While not all these sectors are high-tech, incipient changes will demand improved methods, better engineering, and new job skills. Many of these industries have been organized by trade unions which have generated higher wages and benefits and a strong apprenticeship infrastructure in the skilled trades.
The opportunities are many: a chance for California to lead the way in environmental policy and climate change; an occasion to train a new generation of engineers, technical workers and skilled tradespeople in green technologies; an opportunity for labor, business, and workforce development and economic planners to help develop a new array of well-paying jobs and careers with good benefits; and an opening at the ground level to make quality jobs accessible to low-income communities.
The challenges are also clear. Green technologies will not flourish without a well-trained technical and supporting labor force. Unions will resist green policies if it means trading in old jobs that pay well for new jobs of lesser quality. Green entrepreneurs will be afraid of negotiating away their flexibility and profit margins if wage and regulatory demands are too great. Local community groups will not support “brownfields” redevelopment if they don’t see jobs made available to their residents. There is potential for a “win-win-win” strategy in this growing facet of California’s economy, but it will require careful strategies, educational efforts, and coalitions.