The government is today facing fresh calls to address growing fears that the net zero transition could be derailed by worsening green skills shortages.
A group of more that 40 organisations and businesses led by the Institute of Environmental Management and Assessment (IEMA) has today written to Energy Security and Net Zero Minister Graham Stuart – who will lead the UK delegation at the upcoming COP28 Climate Summit in Dubai – urging him to push for green jobs and skills to be included in the cover text of any final agreement.
The letter is backed by a host of major business groups and leading corporates, including Nestle UK, the British Chambers of Commerce, OVO, and Make UK.
It calls for a “step change” in governments’ approach to green skills development, warning that to deliver on net zero by 2050 goals millions of green jobs will need to be created, and workers will “need to receive the right skills and training to carry out these jobs”.
The International Energy Agency’s Net Zero by 2050 Roadmap projects that the clean energy transition will create 14 million jobs by mid-century, while around five million jobs in fossil fuel industries are expected to be lost.
However, analysts have noted that the official projections are likely to be an underestimate given millions more jobs are expected to be created in areas such as recycling and resource efficiency, water, sustainable agriculture, climate adaptation, nature protection, and other net zero-related industries.
At the same time numerous existing roles in the economy are likely to require new green skills to ensure they can adapt to a decarbonising economy and governments will be under pressure to provide support and training for those working in fossil fuel-based industries that are set to go into structural decline.
The UK government has suggested that it expects to see around two million green jobs created by 2030, but industry groups have repeatedly warned that there is insufficient training capacity to fill these roles – a challenge exacerbated by an ageing workforce in many of the key industrial and engineering sectors at the heart of the net zero transition.
Experts have warned that skills shortages could drive up the cost of clean tech projects and result in significant delays to infrastructure that will prove critical to meeting climate goals.
Sarah Mukherjee, CEO of IEMA, the sustainability professional body that recently launched a new Green Careers Hub, urged the government to use COP28 to make the case for a more ambitious and co-ordinated approach to tackling the looming green skills crunch.
“IEMA is sending a strong message to government, along with colleagues from a wide range of organisations and businesses, that we need to start addressing the skills gaps to adapt to the real climate emergency,” she said. “We’re delighted to be supported by so many organisations who recognise, like we do, the great need for a green-skilled workforce both domestically and internationally.”
The government was considering a request for comment at the time of going to press.
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