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State Survey Identifies Over 300,000 Jobs in California With
Major Emphasis on Green Practices
SACRAMENTO ¡V California is leading the way in creating an environmentally
sensitive economy, with more than 300,000 people spending at least half their time
on the job focused on green products or services, according to a new state
Employment Development Department (EDD) survey that drew responses from
nearly 15,500 employers. In all, the study identified nearly half-a-million green
jobs in California.
¡§California already has more than 300,000 green jobs and the best is yet to come,¡¨
said Victoria Bradshaw, Secretary of the Labor and Workforce Development
Agency. ¡§This survey shows that green jobs are distributed more broadly through
our economy than previously thought. In addition to the 300,000 jobs, another
171,000 jobs are held by employees who spend at least part of their time on green
products and services.¡¨
While the impact of California¡¦s emphasis on a green economy has been widely
discussed, the survey is the first of its kind to take a large scale look at green jobs.
Responding employers represent a total employment of 12.6 million Californians
working in a wide range of industries. The results are preliminary and will be
included in a detailed report expected toward the end of May. They establish a
baseline for charting the development of green employment in the state.
With 3.8 percent of its workers producing green products or providing green
services, California is outpacing other states that have conducted similar surveys,
according to the study by EDD¡¦s Labor Market Information Division (LMID). Similar
surveys found 3.3 percent of the labor force working at green jobs in Washington
State, and 3.0 percent in Oregon and Michigan, some of the first states including
California to complete surveys focused on green jobs.
(more)
EDD News Release No. 10-10 -2- 04/21/10
The survey counted the number of green jobs, which were defined as those
producing goods or services that result in ¡§GREEN¡¨ or:
„h Generating and storing renewable energy.
„h Recycling existing materials.
„h Energy-efficient product manufacturing, distribution, construction, installation,
and maintenance.
„h Education, compliance and awareness.
„h Natural and sustainable product manufacturing.
While the focus of the survey was on green jobs, it also found that 63 percent of
employers use at least one sustainable business practice. Of these, 80 percent
recycle, 50 percent use recycled products, and nearly 40 percent use energy
efficient practices.
The manufacturing sector was the leading employer in the California survey, with
over 93,000 workers in green jobs out of the total of close to 500,000 jobs with at
least some responsibilities related to green products or services. It was followed by
construction with nearly 68,000 green jobs; scientific and technical services
administrative and support, with about 43,000 jobs; waste management and
remediation services, with nearly 39,000 jobs; and wholesale trade, with over
34,000 jobs.
Green jobs range from simple changes in existing jobs such as a laborer who
carefully dismantles materials for recycling purposes and architects who design
energy efficient buildings, to newly developed jobs like solar installers, biomass
collectors, and wind turbine technicians.
The survey identified some of the top occupations involved in producing green
products and services, including carpenters working in green activities; hazardous
waste removal workers; farm workers in sustainable agriculture; assemblers of
green products; recycling center operators; electricians and plumbers in green
activities; architects; industrial production managers; biomass collectors; alternative
fuel vehicle technicians; health and safety managers; alternative fuel vehicle
engineering and management; and transportation program specialists.
The survey also showed:
„h 8.6 percent of employers have employees working on green products and services.
„h Three-quarters of current green workers were trained on the job.
EDD¡¦s LMID surveyed businesses of all sizes and types throughout the state to
develop baseline measures of the number of workers in green jobs, the number of
businesses that have adopted green practices, and emerging occupations that
require further study.
Further information on the survey is available online at
http://www.labormarketinfo.edd.ca.gov/contentpub/GreenDigest/CaliforniaGreenEconomy.pdf.
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