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Green energy jobs were cut by 27,000 in May
May saw a further 27,000 jobs cut from the clean energy sector in the U.S. This bring the total of lost jobs to 620,500.
Prior to the coronavirus pandemic, clean energy was one of the largest and fastest growing sectors for employment in the U.S. Since 2015 the sector had grown by just over 10%, flaunting almost 3.4 million jobs by the end of 2019.
This sector is now one of many that has taken a hit due to COVID-19. Industries within clean energy such as wind, solar, clean vehicles and energy efficiency have all seen significant cuts over the past three months. With COVID-19 cases continuing to rise in some U.S. states and the Payroll Protection Program (PPP) running out, concerns are rising that this once leading employment sector will struggle to recover. This is according to the analysis from the American Council on Renewable Energy (ACORE).
In addition to this Gregory Wetstone, President and CEO of ACORE, commented:
“In May, we saw thousands of additional renewable energy workers join the ranks of the unemployed, further underscoring the damage COVID-19 is inflicting on our workforce. Since the pandemic began, nearly 100,000 renewable energy workers have lost their jobs… We need help from Congress to get American clean energy workers back to work. With commonsense measures like temporary refundability and a delay in the phase-down of renewable energy tax credits, Congress can help restore these good-paying jobs so the renewable sector can continue to provide the affordable, pollution-free power American consumers and businesses want and deserve.”
If you would like to read more about this and see which industries and areas have been hit hardest, follow this link here.
