According to an industry survey commissioned by the Advanced Energy Economy Institute, California boasts 431,800 advanced energy jobs, which grew 5 percent in the past year – more than double the overall state job growth rate – and is on track to grow 17 percent in the coming year, to more than 500,000 workers, based on employer hiring plans.
The California Advanced Energy survey of more than 2,000 businesses, conducted by BW Research Partnership, found that 2.4 percent of the state’s overall workforce is employed in advanced energy.
Other findings of the survey include:
- About half of all advanced energy-related companies surveyed expect to add employees during the coming year, for more than 70,000 new jobs – a 17 percent projected increase.
- Overall, building energy efficiency is the largest segment of the advanced energy industry, supported by California’s policy commitment to energy conservation, advanced building codes, and energy efficiency incentives.
- Advanced electricity generation technologies, including wind and solar power, are major components of the advanced energy economy in California. Nearly 73,000 people are employed in the solar industry in California, full or part-time. Growth over the past 12 months has been particularly dramatic, with workers spending more than half their time on solar up 16 percent from last year.
