The renewable sector registered a total of 2016 jobs in 74.566, Unfortunately 3,6% less than the year before.
Job destruction amounted to 2.760 jobs, which together with the jobs lost since 2009 leave the employment figure at its lowest level in the series, according to a recent report by the Association of Renewable Energy Companies (APPA).
Employment in Spain
By technologies, the ones that created the most net employment in 2016 were wind (535), solar photovoltaic (182), solar thermoelectric (76), low enthalpy geothermal (19), marine (17) and mini-wind power (15). fifteen). However, most of the jobs in the sector are concentrated in the generación biomass energy. It is followed by wind, with 17.100, and solar photovoltaic, with 9.900, according to data provided by Irena (International Renewable Energy Agency).
In the rest of the world, solar photovoltaic is the one that is at the head, by employing 2,8 million people, which represents 11% of all the work generated by renewables. It is followed by wind installations, with 1,1 million jobs.
Irena has set as a goal to comply with climate change policies that by 2030 the implementation of renewables in the world will double. That would, by his calculations, make 24 million people could be employed in this sector by then.
According to Irena, who uses the Association of Renewable Energy Companies (APPA) as a source, the sector comes from destroying employment since 2008, when renewables employed about 150000 people, in that year the highest figure was recorded in our country.
Irena blames this situation on "adverse policies in the electric sector«, Which cause the number of employees in wind, solar and biomass to continue to decline.
Employment in the rest of the world
The countries with the highest number of Job positions in renewable energies in 2016 were China, Brazil, the United States, India, Japan and Germany.
As we have discussed before, the solar photovoltaic sector continues to be the largest employer of renewable energy worldwide, with 2,8 million manufacturing jobs, installation, operation and maintenance, which indicates an increase compared to the 2,5 million last count.
Liquid biofuels were the second largest global employer, with 1,7 million jobs, followed by wind energy, which grew 5% to reach 1,1 million jobs work worldwide.
As the current energy transition unfolds accelerates, job growth in the renewable energy sector will continue to be very important.
Women in the sector
Research carried out by IRENA and other administrations indicates that the sector of renewable employs far more women than the conventional energy sector.
In fact, the almost 90 companies from more than 40 countries that participated in the preparation of the study, representing the entire value chain of the sector (including manufacturing, installation, operation and maintenance, consulting and manufacturing policy), 35% (average) of your templates they are women. At Trina Solar and the REC Group, for example, women represent 42% and 35%, respectively, of its total employees. The percentage in the conventional sector is between 20-25%.
Other data that can to surprise, is that in the United States, the solar industry has seen the percentage of women working in the sector go from 19% to 24% in 2015.
The study also provides information on the jobs that women develop in the sector. On average, women represent 46% of the administrative staff, 28% of the technical workforce, and 32% of management positions. This last ratio is especially significant since only 25% of women hold senior management positions in companies included in the 500 Fortune 2015 ranking.
Indeed, as a new and rapidly growing sector, renewable energy can give women the opportunity to have representation. growing in senior management duties, as indicated in the report.