Energy Efficiency Services Sector: Workforce Education and Training Needs

This report provides a baseline assessment of the current state of energy efficiency-related education and training programs and analyzes training and education needs to support expected growth in the energy efficiency services workforce. In the last year, there has been a significant increase in funding for 'green job' training and workforce development (including energy efficiency), through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA). Key segments of the energy efficiency services sector (EESS) have experienced significant growth during the past several years, and this growth is projected to continue and accelerate over the next decade. In a companion study (Goldman et al. 2009), our research team estimated that the EESS will increase two- to four-fold by 2020, to 220,000 person-years of employment (PYE) (low-growth scenario) or up to 380,000 PYE (high-growth scenario), which may represent as many as 1.3 million individuals. In assessing energy efficiency workforce education and training needs, we focus on energy-efficiency services-related jobs that are required to improve the efficiency of residential and nonresidential buildings. Figure ES-1 shows the market value chain for the EESS, sub-sectors included in this study, as well as the types of market players and specific occupations. Our assessment does not include the manufacturing, wholesale, and retail distribution subsectors, or energy efficiency-focused operations and maintenance performed by facility managers.