Blue Collar Jobs, White Collar Jobs

Green Collar Jobs?

Jo Kahn,

Coordinator of Career and Employment Information Services CareerTech

On the covers of magazines In newspapers On the web In the coffee shop The words green, green-collar jobs or just green jobs.

Todays Job Market

Blue collar, White collar and Green collar?

What is green-collar? What makes it different from blue- or white-collar? And where will those jobs come from?

Who are blue collar workers?

Blue Collar Employment Job involves manual labor A member of the working class Earns an hourly wage May be skilled or unskilled Works in manufacturing, mining, building and construction trades, mechanical work, maintenance, repair and operations maintenance,

Who are white collar workers?

White Collar Employment Salaried professionals and clerical workers Educated workers who performs semiprofessional office, administrative, and sales coordination tasks. Workers who commonly work in well- kept air conditioned office buildings Perform non-manual labor often in an office Service industry worker-customer interaction, entertainment, retail and outside sales

Who then, are the green collar workers?

Lets see if we know where jobs fit in to white, blue and green

What are green collar jobs?

Green collar jobs are blue collar jobs in green businesses that is, manual labor jobs in businesses whose products and services directly improve environmental quality.

Many green collar jobs are middle skill jobs requiring more education than high school but less than a four year degree. Other green collar jobs are white collar jobs in green businesses.

What makes them green?

Green relates to a jobs purpose Jobs that conserve energy, expand renewable energy sources, conserve or improve the environment 40% of green jobs expected in making buildings energy efficient Construction building retrofit, HVAC. mass transit, Infrastructure development, e.g. smart grid, And in manufacturing wind turbines, solar panels, auto batteries, weatherization materials

What makes them green?

"It has to pay decent wages and benefits that can support a family. It has to be part of a real career path, with upward mobility. And it needs to reduce waste and pollution and benefit the environment."
Phil Angelides CA

What makes investing in green jobs good for the US?

What makes them good jobs?

Green-collar jobs tend to be local because many involve work transforming and upgrading the immediate built and natural environment work such as retrofitting buildings, installing solar panels, installing and maintaining wind turbines, constructing transit lines, and landscaping. Unlike white collar jobs that are moving overseas at an alarming rate, these jobs cant be outsourced overseas.

Where are these jobs?

Green collar jobs are located in large and small for-profit businesses, non-profits, social enterprises, and in the public sector. They are relatively high quality jobs with relatively low barriers to entry, in sectors poised for dramatic growth.
According to Raquel Pinderhughes, PhD (2007)

Green Building: Jobs of the Future

So What Do We Know?

RENEWABLE POWER GENERATION

WIND SOLAR HYDROPOWER GEOTHERMAL BIOMASS

ENERGY EFFICIENCY
RESIDENTIAL RETROFITS COMMERCIAL RETROFITS

RENEWABLE TRANSPORT FUELS

ETHANOL BIODIESEL

In 2006, the U.S. economy had about

750,000 green jobs

RENEWABLE POWER GENERATION

127,246 57,546

AGRICULTURE & FORESTRY

CONSTRUCTION & SYSTEMS INSTALLATION MANUFACTURING EQUIPMENT DEALERS & WHOLESALERS

8,741
60,699 6,205

ENGINEERING, LEGAL, RESEARCH, & CONSULTING

GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION TOTAL

418,715
71,900 751,051

By 2038, more than 4.2 million green jobs

will be created by the economy a five-fold increase
2018 RENEWABLE POWER GENERATION RESIDENTIAL, COMMERCIAL RETROFITTING RENEWABLE TRANSPORTATION FUELS ENGINEERING, LEGAL, RESEARCH, & CONSULTING TOTAL 407,200 81,000 1,205,700 846,900 2,540,800 2028 802,000 81,000 1,437,700 1,160,300 3,481,000 2038 1,236,800 81,000 1,492,000 1,404,900 4,214,700

4.2 million green jobs forecast is based on achieving three goals by 2038

40%
of electricity from alternative sources

35%
reduction in energy use
(residential and commercial buildings)

30%
of gas/diesel demand replaced by ethanol/ biodiesel

What skills are needed?

Traditional skills with added 21st century technical updating and thinking green, understanding more environmental technologies, and learning how we can manufacture, install and maintain them.

Green Industries include

Energy efficiency and renewable energy industries The energy-efficient building, construction, and retrofit industries The renewable electric power industry The energy efficient and advanced drive train vehicle industry The biofuels industry The deconstruction and materials use industries The energy efficiency assessment industry serving the residential, commercial, or industrial sectors Manufacturers that produce sustainable products using environmentally sustainable processes and materials.

Career Pathways
Green careers are a high-demand job track for students from a wide range of academic disciplines and with a wide variety of interests. Green jobs exist, and are growing, in a range of industries and at every skill and wage level. By becoming stewards of our environment, young people who choose a green career can help solve the greatest problems of our time while finding work that matches their personal interests and values.

Career Pathways
1. Bicycle repair and bike delivery services 2. Car and truck mechanic jobs, production jobs, and gas-station jobs related to bio-diesel, vegetable oil and other alternative fuels 3. Food production using organic and/or sustainable grown agricultural products 4. Green building 5. Green waste composting on a large scale 6. Hauling and reuse of construction and demolition materials and debris 7. Hazardous materials clean up 8. Green (sustainable) landscaping 9. Manufacturing jobs related to large scale production of a wide range of technologies (i.e. solar panels, bike cargo systems, green waste bins, etc.)
---excerpt from Pinderhughes (2007)

Career Pathways
10. Materials reuse/producing products made from recycled, non-toxic materials 11. Non-toxic household cleaning in residential and commercial buildings 12. Parks and open space maintenance and expansion 13. Printing with non-toxic inks and dyes and recycled papers 14. Public transit jobs 15. Recycling 16. Solar installation and maintenance 17. Tree cutting and pruning 18. Urban agriculture 19. Whole home performance (i.e: HVAC, attic insulation, weatherization, etc.)
---excerpt from Pinderhughes (2007)

Challenges to green job success

The major challenges to a more rapid adoption of renewable energy and energy efficiency in America are a shortage of skills and training in our workforce. This labor shortage is only likely to get more severe as baby-boomers skilled in current energy technologies retire.

What Can We Do Today to Insure a Better Future For Job Seekers?