Green Jobs: Opportunity for Latinos

Investment in clean energy has clear benefits. Clean energy technologies reduce pollution, help the U.S. become more energy independent, and provide sustainable fuel sources. But there is an important and often overlooked benefit to investing in clean energy for low-income workers in general, and Hispanics in particular: the clean-energy sector could create millions of good jobs at all skill levels.

Hispanics have been hit especially hard by the recession. As of September 2009, 12.7 percent of Hispanic workers were unemployed. Moreover, Hispanics comprise a high proportion of workers in the construction and manufacturing industries, which has seen steep declines.

When the booming housing market went bust, millions of construction workers lost their jobs. Manufacturing jobs, which have been in decline for years, lost further ground as disposable incomes waned. Other sectors of the economy have not fared much better, but one notable exception is the clean-energy sector, which has seen modest job growth in the past decade and has created more jobs and attracted more investments than other sectors despite the recession. Between 1998 and 2007, jobs in the clean-energy sector grew by 9.1 percent, compared to 3.7 percent of overall job growth.

There is a huge potential for job growth from clean and renewable energy investments. A report commissioned by the Center for American Progress and the Political Economy Research Institute at the University of Massachusetts found that programs in the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) and the American Clean Energy and Security Act (ACES) could spur $150 billion a year in public and private sector investments in clean energy over the next 10 years, which could net 1.7 million jobs a year, even after taking into account the job losses incurred from shifting investments away from polluting industries. Further, investing in clean energy would create more jobs than similar investments in fossil fuels. Adding 1.7 million jobs a year would amount to a 1 percentage-point drop in the unemployment rate and a 2 percent raise in earnings for low-income workers, according to a companion report commissioned by Green for All.

The Green for All report notes that up to 870,000 of the 1.7 million new green jobs could be available to workers with a high school degree or less. But investments in a green economy would generate a demand for workers at all skill levels, from roofers and solar panel installers in Southern California to electrical and chemical engineers developing new smart grid technology and next-generation biofuels. Most clean energy jobs at all skill levels would come with greater career advancement opportunities than would be available in the fossil fuel industry.

If the right investments are made, Hispanic workers could greatly. Former warehouse machinists could be employed making wind turbines and solar panels. Former home builders could retrofit old buildings into environmentally-friendly buildings. Even the location of these new jobs would benefit Hispanics.

All states stand to benefit, but states with a high percentage of Hispanic residents like Texas, California, and Colorado would stand to benefit most. Texas, where 36 percent of the population is Hispanic, created 55,000 clean-energy jobs in 2007 alone. Colorado, which is 20 percent Hispanic, could see $2.6 billion in investments and 28,000 jobs created. And California, where Hispanics make up 36 percent of the population, would attract $18.5 billion in investments and create a whopping 175,000 jobs per year. Nationally, the clean-energy industries created 8.5 million jobs in 2006.

The U.S. needs a smart and sustainable approach to regaining economic growth and strengthening the country’s middle class, which includes a growing Hispanic community. Hispanic workers must transfer their construction and manufacturing skills, and the skills gained in many other occupations, into skills necessary in the clean and renewable energy sectors. And they need accessible training and education to compete for green-collar jobs and contribute to the greening of our economy and our planet.