A new report, titled “Job Opportunities for the Green Economy,” shows that the majority of green-collar jobs are both geographically and industrially in the same areas that people currently work. Machinists looking for jobs lost to overseas firms are finding work constructing wind farms, as are sheet metal workers, truck drivers and a host of other skilled workers.

Robert Pollin and Jeanette Wicks-Lim — both are members of the Department of Economics and Political Economy Research Institute of the University of Massachusetts — the authors of the report, studied employment conditions in 12 states: Florida, Indiana, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, New York, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Virginia and Wisconsin. They found that there are green jobs in every region of the U.S., and the jobs require the same skill sets that workers already have. Major retraining programs are not necessary to help workers take on green jobs.

"Everyone is talking about how the transition to a clean energy future will create millions of new ‘green-collar' jobs," says Carl Pope, executive director of the Sierra Club. "This report shows that millions of Americans are already working in exactly the kinds of jobs we'll need to build that clean energy future. Those millions and millions more-from steelworkers to software engineers-stand to benefit from implementing the clean energy solutions we need to fight global warming."

The study was commissioned by the Natural Resources Defense Council, which has formed a partnership with the Sierra Club, Blue Green Alliance and United Steelworkers to form the Green Jobs for America Campaign. While you rarely see the United Steelworkers and the Sierra Club on the same side of an argument, the promotion of green industries — and therefore green jobs — certainly benefits the member organizations.

This information is especially important as both the Democratic presidential candidate, Senator Barack Obama, and the Republican presidential candidate, Senator John McCain, have made increasing employment through building up green jobs part of their platforms. To a certain extent, both candidates have been promising to spend the funds necessary to jump-start green industries. That price tag may be low enough that either candidate can afford to keep their campaign promises.

The full report is available as a PDF on the Blue Green Alliance website, at no cost. It focuses on six key methods for reducing the effects of global warming and examines the jobs that are associated with each method.

Related articles:
Can Green Collar Jobs Rebuild Middle Class America?
Green Job Market Emerges
Is Green Collar the Next White Collar?

Photo by Tuey