World Energy Employment Report
Overview
The inaugural edition of the World Energy Employment Report is the first comprehensive inventory of the global energy workforce. It presents new estimates of the size and distribution of the labor force across regions and technologies, increasing the granularity on the number of workers along the entire energy value chain.
Key Findings
- Total Energy Employment (2019): The report provides detailed estimates of energy employment globally, highlighting the diverse roles within the energy sector.
- Energy Employment Trends (2019-2022): The report tracks changes in energy employment over the past few years, focusing on key sectors such as fossil fuels, renewables, and power generation.
- Skills and Wages: The report details the skills required and average wages in various segments of the energy value chain.
- Gender and Employment: It examines the role of gender in the energy workforce, noting disparities and potential areas for improvement.
- Fuel Supply: The report breaks down employment in oil, coal, natural gas, and bioenergy supply sectors.
- Power Sector: It covers employment in power generation, transmission, distribution, and storage, with specific focus on solar PV, wind power, and oil and gas power.
- End Use and Efficiency: The report discusses employment in vehicles manufacturing and energy efficiency measures for buildings and industry.
- Looking Forward: The report forecasts employment growth based on scenarios outlined in the World Energy Outlook series, emphasizing the importance of just and people-centered transitions.
Strategic Recommendations
- Developing Baselines: The report calls for developing comprehensive baselines of global energy employment by region and technology.
- Just Transitions: It emphasizes the need for strategic foresight and commitment to achieve just and people-centered transitions, leveraging existing strengths and promoting innovation.
- Public Support: Building public support for clean energy transitions is crucial, with creating well-paid, quality jobs being a core pillar.
- Labor Council: The Clean Energy Labour Council brings together energy leaders and labor union representatives to address challenges and improve working conditions.
Future Directions
- Annual Updates: The report will be updated annually, diving deeper into different sectors and regions each year.
- Enhanced Examination: The World Energy Outlook series will deepen its examination of energy sector labor needs and how they shift under different scenarios.
Conclusion
The transition to a secure and sustainable energy future requires unprecedented shifts in the global energy sector. Success hinges on the actions taken by governments, industry, labor representatives, and educators to prepare the energy workforce of tomorrow. Capable workers are essential for designing, building, operating, and overseeing the new energy economy.
Dr. Fatih Birol, Executive Director of the International Energy Agency, underscores the importance of these efforts in ensuring a just and sustainable transition.