The U.S. energy efficiency workforce climbed to 2,115,533 people as of June 2021, up slightly from a year earlier but still creeping toward full recovery at a relatively glacial pace, per pre-pandemic data from Environmental Entrepreneurs (E2) and E4TheFuture, which partnered in putting together the report.
Given its consistent growth in the previous years, pre-pandemic projections anticipated that the sector’s workforce would be closer to 2,522,551 people by mid-year, amounting to a deficit of more than 400,000 jobs.
Despite the setbacks, the Energy Efficiency Jobs in America report found that the sector’s 2.1 million-person workforce makes it the energy industry’s largest group, even compared with fossil-fuel sectors like oil, gas and coal. Efficiency as a sector includes building upgrades, heating and cooling systems and appliances, among others.