Blue Collar and Proud of It: The All-In-One Resource for Finding Freedom, Financial Success, and Security Outside the Cubicle (27 page)

So what exactly is a green-collar job? Green-collar jobs combine blue-collar jobs with environmentally focused work, and they are cropping up in every sector.Green-collar America is going to bemostly populated by the blue-collar worker, not the white-collar academic. “The green economy is not just a place where affluent people can spend money. It is fast becoming a place where ordinary people can earn money, ” writes Van Jones in his book
The Green Collar Economy
. Jones is an activist who advocates for green-collar jobs offering a way out of poverty for much of the American population. He is the president of Green for All, an organization that works to engage all sectors of society in the green revolution.

Some of these green jobs require specialized understanding or training while others are just familiar jobs being used in a different way. Green-collar jobs are available to people who already have blue-collar skills. These aren’t jobs that typically require years of new training either. For example, if you want to work on hybrids, you still go to automotive school but would specialize in these alternative-fuel cars rather than, say, brake systems. Plumbers will find themselves installing low-flow toilets or showerheads rather than wasteful appliances. Jobs will be created from the construction of wind farms and green buildings, but they will be jobs that are largely similar to the ones you read about in Chapter 3. If you want to work with your hands and work in a blue-collar sector, but you’re also conscious about wanting to feel good about your impact on the environment, then these green jobs are for you.

Wind turbines and wind farms are being built all across the country, solar energy is growing exponentially, homes and commercial buildings are being weatherized, and the auto world is changing. People want their heating systems replaced with fuel- and energy-efficient ones and businesses are starting to rethink their energy consumption. And that’s just the beginning. This isn’t just about saving polar bears. Really, even if you don’t care about all of the environmental issues (although you should), you won’t have much choice pretty soon. The United States is working to increase sustainable resources, renewable energy, and alternative fuels. That means we’re trying to figure out other ways to power our lives. That’s where hybrid cars, wind farms, and energy-conserving appliances come into the picture.

The American Solar Energy Society estimates that there are currently 8.5 million jobs in the United States in renewable energy or energy-efficient industries. This number is expected to grow to asmany as 40 million by 2030. That’s a ton more jobs and incredible opportunities that are being created by wind power, nuclear energy, green landscaping practices, weatherizing efforts, solar energy, and more. What’s most incredible is that some green industries are already reporting workforce shortages. In September 2008 it was estimated that 60 percent of wind turbines were behind on maintenance because there weren’t enough trained employees to do the work. TheNational Renewable Energy Lab has found that there is already a shortage of skilled workers in the green economy. These green industries are taking off faster than the skilled workers can keep up. Job openings, job opportunities, and the room for growth are enormous.

Different facts and figures are tossed around concerning just how many people this green revolution will impact. According to one report, an investment of $100 billion in clean energy technologies will create 2 million new jobs. This study, published by the Political Economy Research Institute, concluded that a goodmajority of the jobs would be created within sectors that already exist. Pipe fitters, welders, steel workers, and electricians will be able to take their skills and experience and transfer them to this world of green jobs. These opportunities are expected to be created through retrofitting buildings to improve energy efficiency, expandingmass transit and freight trains, building new electrical grid systems, and through wind or solar power. A study released in 2007 by the Renewable Energy Policy Project estimated that an additional 93, 000 new manufacturing jobs would be created just for the production of solar power equipment.

While citizens and communities have long detested nuclear plants, this formof energy is one of the cleanest, most environmentally responsible ways to go. Europe is already using significant amounts of nuclear energy, and the United States is about to see its rebirth. In southern Texas, new plants are in the works and scheduled to be built sometime in 2010. Believe it or not, these facilities are already anticipating a shortage of workers. NRG Energy, which is building two new facilities, started recruiting workers nearly two years in advance. They plan to train these employees, have them work in other locations around the country, and then relocate them to Texas once the plants are up and running. All this effort is happening because it’s nearly impossible to find a skilled workforce to hire and run nuclear power operations.Once they’ve completed training, NRG Energy’s employees will start out with salaries between $65, 000 and $75, 000.

In the southeastern part of the United States, the utility Southern Co. estimates that energy facilities are currently short staffed by asmany as 20, 000 workers. That number is expected to increase to at least 40, 000 by 2011. While only a fraction—about 1 percent—of our country’s electricity comes from wind farms, this amount could increase to 20 percent by 2030, according to the Department of Energy. An estimated $1 trillion will be spent to get to this point. Included in these forecasts is the creation of an untold number of jobs. Wall Street continues to invest in wind power, which is still considered a frontier for investors. The whole industry is expected to grow by as much as $65 billion by 2015.Once a foreign concept, these wind farms are cropping up everywhere from the middle of fields in the Midwest to the ocean along the New England coast.

Where am I going with all of this? I’mtrying to draw you a picture— one that includes tons of different opportunities and industries all working toward common green goals. Some of the partners in this green revolution are truly amazing. The United SteelWorkers Union and the Sierra Club, one of the country’s largest environmental groups, have even teamed up to form the Blue Green Alliance. This collaboration is meant to raise awareness about green jobs while also confronting the issues facing corporations, small businesses, and individual workers.

“I think a lot of people have a misconception about labor and the environmental movement, ” says David Foster, executive director of the Blue-Green Alliance. Foster points out that the unions have long taken environmental issues seriously, especially when it comes to worker safety and health.Now these same unions are branching out into other directions while looking at ways to create jobs that will have a direct and positive impact on the environment, and they are finding ways to engage youth about how to become a part of these blue-collar jobs that are going green.

Foster says the future is in solar energy, alternative fuels, and green construction.These fields are hot nowand are going to stay hot for a long while. Foster says these industries “are the great creators of the twenty-first century.” From solar installation to working at a hybrid manufacturing plant, he predicts, “This is where the jobs of the future will come from.” Foster says it has been hard to get young adults to focus on green-collar jobs. Still, he’s confident that enough do actually care and are activists in their own small way when it comes to helping the planet.

Foster explains these opportunities to younger workers in a simple way. “It’s a blue-collar job with a green purpose.” All that really means is that you could be putting together wind turbines rather than gas-guzzling Hummers. A carpenter could be working for an environmentally conscious contractor rather than one who is wasteful and uses toxicmaterial. An electrician could install solar panels because she feels excited to participate in this green revolution. “It’s not about making you do something you’re not familiar with, ” says Foster. “It’s about taking something you are familiar with and taking it to a new level.” This is what the future will look like in every industry, he says. “You always have a more secure job when you are employed in the industries of the future rather than the past.”

In 2007, the U.S. federal government passed the Green Jobs Act, which provides $120 million each year to begin training workers for jobs in the clean energy sector. These are secure jobs, jobs that are going to be around for decades and simply can’t be outsourced.You can’t send your house overseas to be weatherized, you can’t ship your car to Japan to have it converted to a hybrid, and you’re not about to ship your garage to another country to have solar panels installed. These jobs are staying right here in your own communities. They pay well, they are exciting, and you can feel really good about doing them.

State and local officials all over the United States are taking major steps to reform energy consumption. Many are mandating that their own towns rely on renewable energy. InMassachusetts, the Green Jobs Act became law in August 2008 and provides $68 million to green job initiatives. The act also mandated that the state’s greenhouse gases be reduced by 80 percent by 2050. Many other states andmunicipalities are adopting similarmeasures, whichmeans that drastic changes in energy have to happen. Alternative energy is no longer a hypothetical idea that is being tossed around as an option, but rather one that is being implemented right now.

Chicago is one city that has alreadymade great strides toward being green. The city has planted more than 250, 000 trees and has installed solar panels on some of the city’s biggest tourist attractions and gems, such as the FieldMuseumand Art Institute. The Conference ofMayors, which includes mayors from across the country, has long been urging leaders to adopt the 2030 Challenge, which is aimed at reducing carbon emissions and pollution while cleaning up the air through green buildings, energy efficiency, and alternative fuels. The challenge also suggests such measures as using incentives to get more people to buy and drive plug-in hybrid cars.

Phoenix, Arizona, is patiently waiting for green jobs galore. In 2008, the Greater Phoenix Economic Council reported that there were eleven solar companies that had been to the region to scout for new manufacturing locations. The council estimated that the potential incoming companies represent approximately 4, 800 jobs and $5.5 billion in investments.

In Victoria, British Columbia, the Canadian Centre for Environmental Education offers an opportunity to study green-related subjects and attain a certificate in environmental practice. The areas of concentration include environmental assessments, policy and legislation, pollution prevention, wastemanagement systems, sampling and analytical work, strategic partnerships, environmentalmanagement systems, environmental education and training, natural resources planning, and communication and public awareness. Initiatives and programs such as these demonstrate the need for more educated, more informed people who are committed to green jobs and committed to turning all industries into green ones. In September 2008, it was estimated that there were 530, 000 jobs in Canada related to the environment, according to the Calgary-based Environmental Career Organization of Canada. This same group estimates that green jobs will grow by 8.8 percent in the next five years.

Efforts and initiatives are happening on the corporate and municipal levels that are driving jobs and new opportunities for America’s future workforce. The federal government is offering incentives to corporations by encouraging the construction of wind farms. Companies can receive up to a ten-year tax credit on income generated by wind power. Tax credits are offered to individual consumers as well who add solar panels or energy-efficient windows, for example. I’m telling you all of this so you can understand what is happening out there and to explain that all of these initiatives ultimately translate to more jobs.

Even if you didn’t intend to get into the green-collar sector, there is ultimately great satisfaction knowing that you’ve made a contribution and are doing something worthwhile and helpful. Another benefit to these jobs is that they are plentiful, the industries are growing, and the opportunities are enormous.Getting in on the early stages is always an exciting thing. As Foster from Blue Green Alliance says, we don’t have to be afraid of the future and of the unknown. We have to remember that these jobs are largely familiar to us. So many of these opportunities involve something we already know, such as electrical work, construction, manufacturing, or welding.