Become an Electrician to Save the Planet
When we think about ways to solve climate change we often think about renewable energy. How can we support the grid, and diversify away from fossil fuels? By reducing our consumption of oil, natural gas, and coal while implementing renewable energy sources that include solar, wind, and hydro.
Renewable energy has many forms and can be used on most scales. From micro systems feeding off grid cabins, to homes, businesses, large commercial buildings and utility scale plants. There is one thing that all renewable energy industries have in common: expertise in the field of electricity.
Those within the renewables energy workforce must understand how electricity works and how to safely install it. In order to do so we need to turn back to the trades. The “backbone” of our future success will be built with the skills of electrical engineers, electricians of all types, and utility linesmen. These workers are the new “pipeline” to America’s sustainable energy future. The global economy is electrifying everything it can in order to reduce carbon emissions. Join the shift and become an electrician.
Clean Energy and the Workforce
With growing financial incentive from the Inflation Reduction Act, along with an assortment of local and national incentives, more and more people have been making the leap to renewable energy. From adding solar to their homes, upgrading to electric cars, installing battery backup systems, and turning their homes into “smart homes,” there is a clear shift to renewable energy and electrification of the world around us. In order for this electrification to happen, the workforce requires lots and lots of electricians, more than we currently have.
As we collectively transition into a cleaner energy world, it will create more work for electricians rather than deplete the workload. A concern for many was the loss of jobs in coal mines and other fossil fuel industries as those fields have started to dissipate. As of December 2022, there are only 13,185 coal miners currently employed, and 113,000 oil/gas workers employed compared to the 465,873 electricians employed in America today. Those fossil fuel industry jobs have been replaced with an even larger demand for electricians, especially those that specialize in renewable energy..
The influx of jobs, however, may cause issues in trying to fill the workforce required to sustain the clean energy shift. The United States is already in a shortage of electricians and this shortage may get significantly worse. Older electricians are retiring at a higher rate then younger electricians are entering the workforce. Not only are electricians retiring out of the trade but they are taking their decades long experience with them. With a younger generation filling the workforce that was guided away from the trades, we are seeing a growing demand for tradesmen and women if we are to make the transition to a sustainable energy future.
The Future is Electricity
Renewable energy is only expanding as we look to the future and this will be reflected in the amount of jobs that are created. If you are getting into the job market, or considering another option to college, looking at the trades, electrical specifically, is a wise choice. Job security for electricians is at an all time high with a rewarding, project focused career that is physically and mentally stimulating.
