World Energy Employment

World Energy
Employment
INTERNATIONAL ENERGY AGENCY
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World Energy Employment Abstract
Abstract
The inaugural edition of the World Energy Employment Report is –
to the best of our knowledge – the first comprehensive inventory of
the global energy workforce.
The report presents new estimates of the size and distribution of the
labour force, across regions and technologies, and increases the
granularity on the number of workers along the entire energy value
chain. This includes fossil fuel and bioenergy production; power
sector generation, transmission, distribution and storage; and end
uses, including vehicles and energy efficiency for buildings and
industry. It also details segments of the value chain where these
jobs are located, including raw materials, manufacturing,
construction, utilities, and wholesale, as well as how many are
employed for building new projects versus operating existing energy
facilities, which includes those working in operating and
maintenance of plants. It also provides estimates for emerging
segments for energy, including clean energy innovation.
This mapping can serve as a much-needed foundation for global

energy decision makers, and provides important insights about the
potential opportunities and impacts to labour markets under
different drivers, particularly the transitions to clean energy, as well
as shifting or development of supply chain capacities. How these
labour markets evolve will be explored in depth by scenarios
presented in our World Energy Outlook series.
IEA. All rights reserved.

PAGE | 3
World Energy Employment Foreword
Foreword
The current energy crisis brought on by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine of this. It is why the IEA’s Clean Energy Labour Council brings
is prompting countries and companies to accelerate their clean together energy leaders and labour union representatives from
energy transitions and urgently shift and secure their energy supply around the world to understand the challenges the energy sector
chains. The success of these efforts will rest on the shoulders of the faces and find ways to address them while improving conditions for
65 million workers currently employed in the energy sector and the workers and attracting a more skilled and diverse workforce.
ability of the energy sector to attract and train new workers. As
presented in the IEA’s Global Roadmap to Net Zero Emissions by The most immediate recommendation from the Commission and
2050, realising this pivot requires many more workers than today, Council was to develop a comprehensive baseline of global energy
and while some jobs will be lost, many more will be created. The new employment by region and by technology. This inaugural edition of
jobs will not always be in the places where jobs are lost, but they may the World Energy Employment Report does just that by providing a
suit the workers and skill sets from industries that are downsizing. first-of-its-kind picture of global energy employment. This work is just
a starting point for the IEA and will be updated annually, diving
With strategic foresight and commitment to achieving just and deeper into different sectors and regions each year. The IEA’s World
people-centred transitions, policy makers and industry decision Energy Outlook series will also deepen its examination of energy
makers can provide the support workers need to transition out of sector labour needs and how they shift under different scenarios.
declining industries and maximise opportunities for additional good
quality jobs across different regions. This can be done by capitalising The transition to a secure and sustainable energy future for all
on existing strengths, infrastructure and skill sets; promoting requires unprecedented shifts in the global energy sector. Its success
innovation; and identifying opportunities in new and emerging areas. will depend a great deal on the actions governments, industry, labour
representatives and educators take to prepare the energy workforce
This is why I convened the Global Commission on People-Centred of tomorrow. Above all, it will depend on the capable workers
Clean Energy Transitions to develop actionable recommendations for responsible for designing, building, operating and overseeing the
governments, companies and civil society to maximise the benefits of new energy economy.
the transition for people and workers. Building public support for
clean energy transitions is more essential than ever if we are to make Dr. Fatih Birol
consistent, enduring progress on fulfilling the world’s energy and Executive Director
climate commitments. Creating well-paid, quality jobs is a core pillar International Energy Agency

PAGE | 4
World Energy Employment Table of contents
Table of contents
Overview ........................................................................................ 8 Energy end use and efficiency ................................................... 43

Introduction .................................................................................. 9 Vehicles manufacturing .............................................................. 44
Total energy employment, 2019 ................................................. 10 Efficiency in buildings and industry ............................................. 46
Box: Scope and drivers of global energy employment ................ 14 Looking forward .......................................................................... 48
Energy employment trends, 2019-2022...................................... 19 Employment growth in IEA scenarios ......................................... 49
Skills, training and wages ........................................................... 20 People-centred transitions .......................................................... 50
Energy employment and gender ................................................ 22 Innovative clean energy technologies ......................................... 51
Fuel supply .................................................................................. 22 Box: Improvement of energy employment data .......................... 52
Oil supply ................................................................................... 24 Next steps .................................................................................. 53
Coal supply ................................................................................ 26 Annexes ....................................................................................... 54
Box: Quality of energy jobs......................................................... 28 Methodology ............................................................................... 55
Natural gas supply...................................................................... 29 Glossary ..................................................................................... 58
Bioenergy supply ........................................................................ 31 Acknowledgments ...................................................................... 61
Power sector ................................................................................ 32
Power generation ....................................................................... 33
Solar PV ..................................................................................... 34
Coal power ................................................................................. 36
Wind power ................................................................................ 38
Oil and gas power ...................................................................... 40
Power transmission, distribution and storage ............................. 41
Box: Access to electricity and clean cooking .............................. 42

PAGE | 5
World Energy Employment Executive summary
Executive summary
Energy employment is set to shift rapidly as countries and and energy efficiency retrofits. Today’s global energy crisis could
companies accelerate efforts to decarbonise and meet net zero prompt governments and industry to rethink their global supply
emissions pledges. To date, there is no global benchmark dataset chain exposures especially vis-à-vis dependence on Russia’s fossil
for employment across the energy sector. This report aims to fuels. This may portend another few years of larger-than-normal
provide this baseline by sector, region, and value chain segment. shifts in energy employment.
These estimates were calibrated against more than 15 000 data
points on employment and wages gathered from national labour Clean energy employs over 50% of total energy workers, owing
to the substantial growth of new projects coming online. Most
accounts, company reports, in-country experts, international
databases and academic literature. The end product is a first-of-its- regions have surpassed this threshold already, though the Middle
East and Russia are notable exceptions. Many clean energy
kind assessment of global energy employment, which can serve as
a foundation for policy makers and companies to understand the segments rival the workforce in conventional energy segments.
Low-carbon power generation, mainly solar and wind, employs 7.8
labour-related opportunities and challenges of an evolving global
energy sector. million, on par with oil supply. Vehicle manufacturing employment,
which stands at 13.6 million globally, already employs 10% of its
The energy sector employed over 65 million people in 2019, workforce in the manufacture of EVs, their components and
equivalent to around 2% of global employment. These jobs are batteries.
roughly equally distributed across fuel supply (21 million), in the
Over half of energy employment is in the Asia Pacific region.
power sector (20 million), and in end uses (24 million) such as
energy efficiency and vehicle manufacturing. Rapid energy infrastructure expansion in Asia Pacific is outpacing
other regions, and lower-cost labour is enabling the emergence of
Energy sector employment has recovered strongly, after a significant clean energy manufacturing hubs that supply projects
turbulent few years in global labour markets. At the onset of the worldwide, notably for solar, electric and hybrid vehicles, and
Covid-19 pandemic, layoffs were common across geographies, batteries. China alone accounts for almost 30% of the global energy
especially in oil and gas supply. Yet, energy employment exceeds workforce. However, established energy companies in North
pre-pandemic levels today thanks to resilient growth in clean America and Europe maintain global market strength and anchor a
energy. Fossil fuel employment, however, is only set to return to sizeable employment base working on domestic and overseas
pre-pandemic levels this year. Hiring gaps and tight labour markets projects, as is the case in oil and gas, wind, and vehicle
have contributed to supply chain disruptions and project delays in engineering.
many parts of the energy sector, notably offshore wind, oil and gas,

PAGE | 6
World Energy Employment Executive summary
The construction of new projects, including the manufacture of declines in fossil fuel jobs. In the IEA’s Net Zero Emissions by 2050
their components, is the largest driver of energy employment Scenario, we estimate that 14 million new clean energy jobs are
across the value chain. Over 60% of the workforce is employed to created by 2030, while another 16 million workers shift to new roles
develop new projects, including building power plants, bringing oil related to clean energy. Around 60% of these new jobs require
wells online and laying pipelines, manufacturing cars, carrying out some degree of post-secondary training.
efficiency retrofits and installing high-efficiency electric heat pumps.
Making growth in employment people-centred is key to global
The energy sector requires higher-skilled workers than other energy transitions. Maximising job quality helps to attract workers,
industries. Around 45% of energy workers today are in high-skilled including those moving from other parts of the energy sector.
occupations, compared to only one-quarter across the economy. Energy sector wages typically see a premium over economy-wide
This share is even higher for jobs in research and development for average wages, though this premium ranges substantially from 10%
new energy innovations, many of which are set to grow rapidly to to 50% across advanced economies alone. Established industries
2030. Strategic planning can ensure that scaling is not hampered by such as nuclear, oil and gas typically offer the highest wages.
a shortage of skilled workers. Establishing market strength in these Newer segments, such as solar, do not have the same labour
segments relies on new training and certification, and can be a protections and union representation as established fossil fuel
focus for industry along with ministries of energy, labour, and industries, especially in emerging market and developing
education. economies. The percentage of women in the energy workforce is
also consistently low when compared to economy-wide averages,
Workers in coal and other fossil fuels have many of the skills
with less than 15% in senior management positions.
needed to fill positions in growing clean energy sectors. Fossil
fuels employ almost 32 million globally today. Some companies are Energy employment is central to the IEA’s work on
transferring their workers to low-carbon segments internally to retain accelerating clean energy transitions globally. We will continue
talent, and allow for flexibility to shift workers between different to analyse and model global energy employment, including with an
business segments as needs arise. However, this is not an option increased focus on skills, worker demographics, and best practices
everywhere, and ensuring a just transition for affected workers is a for ensuring a secure and just transition. However, all countries
growing focus for policy makers in many regions, especially for coal, have a role in improving energy labour force data. Better data is
which has already seen consistent declines since 2015. essential to ground conversations on energy policy and to support
workers, governments, labour unions, and companies as they
There is tremendous growth for energy employment on the prepare to seize the opportunities of the new energy economy.
horizon, driven primarily by new investments to decarbonise.
In all IEA scenarios, energy employment is set to grow, outweighing

PAGE | 7
World Energy Employment Overview
Overview

PAGE | 8
Introduction
Clean energy transitions and efforts to decarbonise energy are the Companies cannot respond to these market and policy signals
prevailing trend reshaping global energy employment. Countries without the skilled workforce needed to deliver these projects in the
representing over 70% of global emissions today have committed to regions they are being developed. Shortages of skilled labour
net zero emissions targets by mid-century, which will create millions across energy supply chains are already translating into project
of new clean energy jobs around the world. A paradigm shift in the delays and impacting investment decisions in some sectors, such
energy workforce will require strategic foresight to train up the as oil, gas, and offshore wind. While worldwide labour markets
requisite workforce for deploying clean energy at scale as well as remain in flux since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic, energy has
just transition policies that provide for employees negatively been among the fastest evolving industries globally in the last five
affected by these changes. The IEA’s seminal report, Net Zero by years.
2050: A Roadmap for the Global Energy Sector (NZE Scenario),
To navigate the evolutions in the workforce on the horizon, decision
projects that the energy transition will create 14 million new jobs
makers require better visibility into energy employment today. The
related to clean energy technologies and require the shift of around
World Energy Employment Report aims to deliver the most
5 million workers away from fossil fuel sectors. In addition to these
comprehensive assessment of the global energy labour market to
new roles, 16 million workers will require shift to work in clean
date, and provide a foundational resource for policy makers,
energy segments, requiring additional skills and training.
industry, jobseekers and students. Our analysis focuses on
However, this report also comes out amidst an energy crisis establishing a 2019 baseline, given the tumultuous last few years
incurred by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. This creates urgent within the global labour market, but gives 2021 estimates where
imperatives for the energy sector, some of which are accelerating possible. It also provides an indication of how these labour
the switch off fossil fuels, and others which are focused on shoring demands may evolve in 2022. It covers all parts of the energy value
up security of supply. Governments are working with the private chain, from fossil fuels to clean energy and key end-use sectors,
sector to localise production and address global supply chain and enumerates employment by subsector, by region, and by
weaknesses, both within fossil fuels and key clean energy economic sector. The industry is facing a period of unparalleled
segments, including the minerals critical to their manufacture. This change, but has numerous opportunities to expand economic
builds on the unprecedented USD 710 billion governments made growth, improve labour conditions, continue to cultivate a highly-
available to clean energy in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic in skilled, inclusive workforce, and ensure people are at the centre of
the name of sustainable recoveries. the clean energy transition.

PAGE | 9
Energy employs 65 million people worldwide and accounts for 2% of global employment,
relatively evenly distributed across fuel supply, power sector, and end uses
Energy employment as a share of global employment, and by energy sector, 2019
Fuel supply
21 million
Energy employment
2%
Power sector
20 million
End uses
24 million
Note: End uses refers to industry, buildings and transport energy-related jobs.

PAGE | 10
The energy sector employed around 41 million workers in 2019, with an additional 24 million
working in energy end uses including vehicle manufacturing and efficiency
Over 65 million people were employed in the energy and related Energy employment is spread globally, with a greater concentration
sectors in 2019, accounting for almost 2% of formal employment in manufacturing hubs and producer economies. The People’s
worldwide. Half of the energy workforce is employed in clean Republic of China (hereafter ‘China’) has the largest number of
energy technologies. energy workers, near 20 million, which represents around 2.5% of
the employed in China. In the Middle East and Eurasia, the energy
Energy sector employment in 2019 is divided approximately into
workforce makes up a relatively high share of economy-wide
thirds among fuel supply (coal, oil, gas and bioenergy), the power
employment, averaging 3.6%. North America has 7.9 million
sector (generation, transmission and distribution), and energy end
workers in energy, equivalent to 3.4% of total employment; Europe
uses (vehicles manufacturing and energy efficiency for buildings
has 7.5 million workers in energy, or 2.4% of total employment.
and industry).
These jobs span the energy value chain and are captured in
In fuel supply, oil has the largest labour force, totalling almost
different economic activities. Those working in the production of raw
8 million. This is followed by 6.3 million in coal supply and
materials, which includes mining and extractive sectors for fuels and
3.9 million in gas supply. In the power sector, generation employs
agriculture for the production of bioenergy, total over 8.5 million. In
around 11.3 million while transmission, distribution and storage
the mining sector in particular, energy workers make up 15% of
combined account for approximately 8.5 million. In end uses,
global employment. Over 21 million energy sector employees work
13.6 million are employed in vehicle manufacturing, while another
in manufacturing and approximately 15 million are in construction,
10.9 million are employed in energy efficiency. making up 5-6% of their respective sectors. An estimated 14 million
Roughly 65% of the energy sector workforce is connected to work in utilities and other professional services. Other types of jobs,
developing new energy infrastructure, while 35% are involved in such as wholesale traders and energy transport, make up the
operating and maintaining existing energy assets. Clean energy balance.
employment is rapidly growing alongside efforts to decarbonise
energy systems—these sectors account for 50% of the global
energy labour force today, and represent the highest employment
creation potential.

PAGE | 11
Energy employment spans many economic sectors, with manufacturing and construction of new
projects dominating today’s energy workforce
Energy employment by region and economic sector, 2019

25 25 Wholesale and
Million employees
Rest of world
transport
Other Asia Pacific
Professional
20 India 20 and utilities
China
Construction
Africa
15 Europe 15 Manufacturing
C and S America
North America Raw materials
10 10
5 5
0 0
Fuel supply Power sector End uses Fuel supply Power sector End uses
Notes: C and S America = Central and South America. Please see the Annex for definitions of regional groupings and economic sectors.

PAGE | 12
Fuel supply, power and end use sectors are key sources of employment across every region
Employment by region and energy sector in thousands of employees, 2019
Central
North Other Asia Rest of
and South Europe Africa China India Global
America Pacific world
America
Supply:
100 <50 100 200 3 400 1 400 800 300 6 300
coal
Supply:
1 900 1 100 600 1 600 1 100 700 1 100 3 800 11 800
oil and gas
Supply:
100 800 300 600 300 500 600 <50 3 300
bioenergy
Power:
1 000 600 1 400 400 3 800 1 200 1 800 1 000 11 300
generation
Power:
900 400 1 200 500 2 300 1 500 1 200 600 8 500
grids
End uses:
1 800 600 2 700 200 4 500 1 200 2 100 600 13 600
vehicle
End uses:
2 000 300 1 100 400 3 800 1 500 1 400 400 10 900
efficiency
All energy 7 900 3 800 7 500 3 800 19 200 7 900 8 900 6 600 65 700
Notes: Grids includes transmission, distribution, and storage. Vehicles includes the manufacturing of all road vehicles (two- and three-wheelers, passenger vehicles, light-duty commercial
vehicles, buses, and trucks) and batteries for electric vehicles. Efficiency refers to energy efficiency in buildings (covering retrofits, heating, ventilation and air conditioning equipment,
as well as appliances); and in industry. Values may not sum due to rounding.

PAGE | 13
Overview
World Energy Employment
Understanding the scope and drivers of global energy employment

The energy sector is a capital-intensive industry, geared to meet, The regional distribution of energy jobs depends on multiple
as efficiently as possible, the world’s expanding energy needs. factors. First, jobs are concentrated where energy facilities are
Given this, a large portion of its workforce is focused on new and being built more than where they currently exist. Given the labour
expanding projects—building energy efficient power plants, intensity of building new facilities, fast-growing markets tend to
expanding and upgrading grids, and tapping into additional deposits dominate the workforce. Second, today’s global supply chains for
of fossil fuels. Accordingly, developing an estimate of global energy some upstream components are concentrated in certain countries.
employment needs depends heavily on planned energy Notably, manufacturing of solar PV is centred in China. The
investments in the coming years, as well as current and new production of fossil fuels spans the globe among resource-rich
capacity and production. Our employment estimates are developed economies, but know-how on areas such as exploration,
using the IEA’s comprehensive data on global investments, energy development, production and services are concentrated in regions
production and demand. Our assessments are also calibrated to like Houston, Texas in the United States, with companies based
data from national labour statistics, corporate filings, company there providing expertise for projects worldwide. Third, worker
interviews, international organisations’ databases and academic compensation differs widely across countries, by a factor of up to
literature. 20. Differences in labour costs beyond earnings, such as benefits
and pensions, add a secondary layer of country variations. Where
Numbers in this report are shown for 2019, the latest year of compensation is low, like in India, the construction of the same
comprehensive historic data, to establish a pre-pandemic baseline, project may employ many-fold the workers as they do in advanced
accompanied by high-level estimates for 2021 and 2022. In this economies. Finally, the prevalence of part-time, temporary, and
report’s accounting, energy employment encompasses all jobs informal work creates wide disparities in how many people work in
directly related to the operation of energy facilities and their a sector, even when normalising to FTEs, as we do in this report.
construction, as well as indirect jobs in manufacturing of direct Short-term projects, such as the installation of rooftop solar PV,
inputs specific to the energy industry. Indirect jobs associated with often rely on part-time workers. In emerging markets and
production of general goods such as cement are not counted, nor developing economies (EMDEs), informal work is common.
are induced jobs. Jobs are normalised to full-time equivalent (FTE) Deployment or decommissioning of a project can create jobs only
employment for consistent accounting. Numbers include informal for a few weeks but wages earned can represent an important
workers in order to better reflect the impacts of energy policy on the share of workers’ annual income, even if they work in farming or
labour force. The Annex shows further detail on the methodology. other jobs for most of the year.

PAGE | 14
Asia is home to energy’s largest and fastest-growing workforce, driven by rapidly expanding
energy infrastructure and a significant share of global clean energy manufacturing capacity
Energy employment in fossil fuel and clean energy sectors by region, 2019
Notes: This map is without prejudice to the status of or sovereignty over any territory, to the delimitation of international frontiers and boundaries and to the name of any territory, city or
area. Please see the Annex for definitions of regional groupings.

PAGE | 15
Employment in new sectors already rivals levels in conventional energy sectors
Employment in selected energy subsectors, 2019
12
Million employees
10
0
ICE Power grids Oil supply Power Industry Coal supply Building Gas supply Power Bioenergy Electric
vehicles generation: efficiency retrofits and generation: supply vehicles
low-carbon heat pumps fossil fuels
Notes: ICE vehicles = internal combustion engine vehicles. Power grids includes transmission, distribution and storage. Low-carbon power generation includes nuclear and renewables.
Electric vehicles includes the manufacturing of batteries.

PAGE | 16
New energy projects are the major driver of employment, with around 65% of energy workers
employed to build and deploy new solar plants, wellheads, heat pumps, cars, and more
Energy employment by economic sector, 2019

25
Million employees
20
Operating existing assets

15
Building new projects
10
0
Raw materials Manufacturing Construction Utilities and Wholesale and
professional transport
Notes: Jobs labelled “building new projects” include those construction of new power plants, building new well heads in existing or new oil and gas fields, manufacturing upstream
components for these new projects (including IT systems and software), implementing new energy efficiency retrofits in buildings or upgrades to industrial processes, manufacturing new
vehicles, and others. “Operating existing assets” includes jobs in operations and maintenance, administration at energy firms, energy traders, transport and shipping of fuels, and in
wholesale trade. These jobs are commonly at electricity and gas utilities, power plants, refineries and other fuel processing facilities, at trading decks and offices and ports, etc. Please
see the Methodology section and the Annex for definitions of economic sectors.

PAGE | 17
Energy employment rebounded in 2021 and is set to rise further in 2022, but tight labour markets
remain a cross-cutting barrier
All drivers of energy employment are set to rise in 2022, but the largest increases in investment in 2021 and, along with China, are
turbulence afoot in global markets is reshaping which regions are set to drive nearly 60% of the growth in 2022. Employment
seeing investment and how much of the increased economic activity constructing new projects has grown strongly in these regions,
flows to workers. Energy investment is set to pick up by 8% in 2022, whereas EMDEs have struggled to find the investment resources
reaching USD 2.4 trillion, but almost half of the increase in capital needed. In particular, energy efficiency programmes have been
spending is linked to higher costs. Total energy demand also allocated an extra USD 165 billion in the wake of the pandemic.
climbed higher than pre-pandemic levels in 2021, with increased New programmes, notably the European Union’s REPowerEU, put
production driving a greater need for workers. increasing emphasis on energy efficiency targets, driving up
demand for workers to retrofit buildings and to administer these
Higher levels of capital spending and energy demand are not projects.
necessarily correlating to increases in labour. Multiple supply chain
pressures and higher energy prices are driving up the costs of Employment in fuel production has recovered somewhat amidst the
construction inputs like steel and cement, meaning more project scramble to secure energy supply, but remains below pre-pandemic
costs are going to materials. Key components for energy projects levels. Employment growth is concentrated in natural gas, with the
are also seeing cost inflation for services and operations, notably in build out of new LNG facilities and expanding production. The coal
oil and gas, transmission and distribution, wind and solar. Tight mining workforce – which had been decreasing rapidly with
markets for specialised and highly skilled labour have led to increased mechanisation – saw this trend let up with coal mining on
increased worker turnover in response to more competition and the rise in China after shortages in 2021, and could climb in India
escalating wages, hindering hiring. with mounting concerns for energy security in 2022.
We estimate that total energy employment in 2021 was up around However, several risks could derail this momentum in expanding
1.3 million from 2019, and could increase by another 6 percentage energy employment. Concerns about cost inflation are acting as a
points by 2022. Clean energy accounts for virtually all of the growth brake on the willingness of companies to increase spending,
in energy employment. Major new manufacturing facilities have despite the strong price signals. Ongoing labour shortages and
come online since 2019, most notably for solar and EVs. These increased worker turnover are creating challenges for hiring and
facilities are larger and increasingly automated, improving labour recruitment.
efficiency, especially in EMDEs. Advanced economies provided the

PAGE | 18
In recent years, the share of energy employment related to clean energy technologies has grown
steadily and has proven more resilient through the Covid-19 pandemic
Energy employment in fossil fuel and clean energy sectors, 2019-2022

80 100%
Million employees
60 75% Fossil fuels
Clean energy
40 50%
Share of energy
employment related
to clean energy
20 25%
0 0%
2019 2020E 2021E 2022E
Notes: Clean energy employment includes workers in bioenergy supply, nuclear and renewables for power generation, grids and storage, electric vehicles manufacturing, and energy
efficiency. Estimates are modelled for 2020 to 2022 based on latest IEA energy balances and investment data, under the assumption that labour intensity and the job creation potential
of new investment remain constant across years. Labour market disruptions associated with the Covid-19 pandemic made 2020 employment difficult to assess. Accordingly, 2020
estimates are indicative.

PAGE | 19
The energy sector has a large share of high-skilled labour and offers higher than average wages
The energy sector demands more high-skilled workers than other IEA. All rights reserved.
industries, with 45% of the workforce requiring some degree of This high degree of skilling fetches higher wages on average.
tertiary education, from university degrees to vocational Energy sector wages typically see a premium over economy-wide
certifications. Less than 10% of energy employment is in low-skilled average wages, though this premium ranges substantially from 10%
labour, and is concentrated in EMDEs, although may be missing to 50% across advanced economies alone. These premiums remain
many informal workers in those regions. true across all regions, but the differences between wages in
advanced economies and EMDEs remain pronounced, with the
Variations are larger between geographies than across sectors, with
range of wages between geographies being larger than the range of
EMDEs employing more low-skilled or informal workers in manual
jobs within the energy sector within the same region.
tasks, whereas in advanced economies, many labour-intensive
parts of the energy business have been mechanised or automated. Established industries such as nuclear, oil and gas typically offer the
highest wages. Industries with a high share of workers in
Global employment by skill level, 2019 construction, such as installing solar panels or carrying out energy
Economy-wide employment Energy employment efficiency retrofits, typically have lower wage premiums. Newer
energy sector sectors, such as solar, also have less union
5% representation than established fossil fuel industries, especially in
16%
24% EMDEs. Labour representation has led to higher wages in parts of
Low the energy sector. For example, coal jobs in India receive
Medium 45%
compensation around three to four times the national average.
High
50%
In all IEA scenarios, energy employment is set to grow, creating a
60% growing demand for workers with energy-sector specific skill sets.
Meeting a growing need for skills is a concern raised in interviews
we conducted with companies, 1 well as in dialogues held in IEA’s
1
This employment includes passenger cars, commercial vehicles, buses, and trucks. Employment
in other forms of transportation such as rail, aviation, and shipping is not included. Jobs in the
retail and maintenance of vehicles are not included.

PAGE | 20
Clean Energy Labour Council between governments and labour talent. Companies highlighted a growing need to revamp teaching
leaders. Many of the skills needed exist in adjacent industries. For curricula of degrees with the highest demand, namely engineering,
instance, project managers in residential construction have some of followed by economics and information technology. Surveyed
the same skills needed to manage the construction of solar farms. companies also welcome opportunities to work with universities to
Companies also indicate an intention to transition existing shape new curricula.
employees from carbon-intensive activities to other parts of their
portfolio, instead of exclusively pursuing new hires or dismissing Average annual earnings per employee by energy sector, 2019
any workers. This is particularly true in the electricity and other 100 000
Earnings (USD per year)

clean energy sectors, where all firms interviewed saw either rising Regional
averages
employment or were reallocating their workforce internally rather 80 000
than dismissing any workers. To support this, companies have Full range
created internal upskilling and reskilling programmes in partnership 60 000

with universities. Advanced
40 000 economies
Many firms interviewed said they faced a very competitive
Emerging market
environment for hiring candidates with the requisite skill sets. This 20 000 and developing
was particularly true for positions in fields for science, technology, economies
engineering, and mathematics (STEM), followed by project
Coal Oil and Solar PV Wind
managers and other technical roles. Companies also expressed supply gas
concern about the high turnover of workers with the most in-demand supply
competences, which has increased throughout the Covid-19 IEA. All rights reserved.
pandemic.
The IEA intends to deepen our analysis on growing skilling needs in
Strong links between employers and universities or vocational energy, as well as the transferability of skills from energy sectors in
training programmes can fill talent pipelines, as can research grants decline and from adjacent industries.
for PhDs, internships and apprenticeships. New graduate rotation
programmes were cited as ways to cultivate, attract and retain key

PAGE | 21
Female representation in energy is far below economy-wide averages

Women are strongly under-represented in the energy sector. balance, with special focus needed particularly in management.
Despite making up 39% of global employment, women account for Numerous studies show that improved diversity enhances firm
only 16% of traditional energy sectors captured in dedicated labour performance, long-term competitiveness and greater innovation, all
classifications. As in economy-wide employment, women make up a of which contribute to the energy sector advances needed to meet
very small share of senior management in energy, just under 14% global change goals.
on average. However, there is substantial variation among energy
sectors, with the percentage shares in nuclear and coal the lowest Employment by gender, 2019
at 8% and 9%, respectively, whereas electric utilities are among the 100% Men
Share of employment
highest with nearly 20%. This compares with 16% of women in Women
senior management economy-wide. While ratios are better in 80%
Women in senior
regions with policy frameworks and strong private sector efforts to leadership
improve gender balance, all geographies show the energy sector 60%
lags behind the economy-wide average when it comes women’s
participation in senior management roles in the sector. 40%
There are no major differences in the share of female employment

20%
between fossil fuels and clean energy globally. However, clean
energy start-ups show signs of change, with a greater share of
0%
women founders and inventors in clean energy, even if still far short Economy-wide Energy sector
of parity. This marks an opportunity for these growing segments to
help increase female representation. However, further steps must
Notes: Employment shares are from the International Labour Organization (ILO)
be taken in all energy sectors if women’s roles in energy companies covering 48 countries for the energy sector. Senior management shares are IEA global
calculations based on the Refinitiv PermID database.
is to improve. In the IEA’s NZE Scenario, as many as 14 million new
jobs in clean energy are created by 2030. Introducing new public The IEA’s Gender Diversity Initiative has been developing further
sector policy frameworks supporting diverse hiring practices, as well indicators on the topic of gender and energy, including energy
as private sector initiatives, could make the energy employment employment, recently published in a dedicated data explorer.
growth this decade an opportunity to achieve a better gender

PAGE | 22
World Energy Employment Fuel supply
Fuel supply

PAGE | 23
Oil supply employs almost 8 million, but companies face challenges hiring and retaining staff
Around 95 million barrels per day (mb/d) of crude oil were produced 15% each in North America and Africa. Refining employs 1.4
in 2019, with the Middle East and North America making up over million, concentrated in the Asia Pacific region.
half of global production. Oil supply has increased by an annual
The historic plunge in oil prices at the start of the Covid-19
average of around 1.6% from 2010 to 2019, though global
pandemic in 2020 led to a sharp decline in oil industry employment
investment declined over the same period, before rebounding to
as layoffs forced workers flee to other industries. A strong rebound
USD 440 billion in 2021.
in oil demand has not led to a commensurate increase in investment
Employment in oil supply by region, 2019. or staffing levels, with employment falling to 7.1 million in 2021 and
is only recovering slightly in 2022.
North America Oil and gas companies see significant challenges in hiring new staff,
Central and South America and face an ageing workforce. A growing number of oil and gas
Europe workers indicate interest in shifting their careers to clean energy.
Eurasia Companies have been increasing wages to attract talent. Some
Middle East have also published just transition strategies to upskill and retain
existing staff in an effort to address employees’ worries about
Africa
declining career development opportunities.
China
Other Asia Pacific Many skills of oil and gas workers are in strong demand by other
energy sectors. For example, petroleum and gas engineering skills
are highly applicable to geothermal, including seismic interpretation,
IEA. All rights reserved. drilling and completions, reservoir mapping or flow assurance.
Oil supply has the highest employment among fossil fuels, at almost Chemical engineers in refineries can apply their knowledge of
8 million workers in 2019, of which 5 million work in extraction and common raw materials and equipment towards the production of
production, and around 1.4 million each in transport and refineries. green fuels and hydrogen. Skilled workers can transfer to deep
Nearly 20% of the jobs are in the Middle East, followed by almost water offshore wind, carbon capture and storage, or midstream
hydrogen pipeline infrastructure, among many other job disciplines.

PAGE | 24
Drilling new wells and developing infrastructure occupies most oil supply workers, though
operating existing platforms and refineries provide a sizeable share of employment as well
Employment in oil supply by economic sector and asset life stage, 2019
3.0
Million employees
2.5
2.0
1.5 30%
1.0 70%
0.5
0
Raw materials Manufacturing Construction Professional Wholesale and Building new projects
and utilities transport Operating existing assets

Notes: These figures include employment in oil production, transportation, and refining. Our estimates do not contain employees who work at retail fuelling stations, as many of these
jobs are connected to service and retail, and are not linked exclusively to oil with different fuelling sources (biofuels, CNG, electric charging, etc.).

PAGE | 25
Coal supply employs 6.3 million workers, but the industry is focused on the coming transition
Global coal production totalled 5.7 billion tonnes in 2021, following a productivity thanks to automation, including a near-halving of workers
decade at similar levels. Production has shifted towards Asia Pacific per tonne produced in China over the last decade. As such, mining
countries since 2010, where 77% of global coal is now mined, while jobs make up 60% of employment in coal supply, followed by 20% of
output in Europe and North America continues to fall. Investment in jobs in wholesale and transport. With global coal demand flat over the
coal supply has declined by 4% per year from 2010, to last decade, most workers are engaged in existing operations.
USD 95 billion in 2021, with further contractions projected in every
Coal supply jobs often provide more benefits and worker protection
IEA scenario.
than competing industries. In the United States, coal workers see a
Employment in coal supply by region, 2019 wage premium over average jobs of about 50%. In India, coal is the
only sector with its own pension scheme covering both permanent
North America and contract workers. These benefits have been established to
Central and South America compensate for the health and safety hazards of mining.
Europe Coal supply jobs tend to be concentrated in remote areas, with local
Africa communities highly dependent on coal for income and employment.
China Regions such as Mpumalanga in South Africa, Cesar in Colombia,
India and East and South Kalimantan in Indonesia have up to 10% of their
Other Asia Pacific employment and 35% of their GDP directly predicated on coal.
Rest of world
Given the emissions intensity of coal, both direct and indirect jobs in
coal-dependent communities are among the most at risk in energy
transitions. Low-skilled and informal coal supply workers, particularly
in EMDEs, will require retraining as well as productive inclusion
In 2019, around 6.3 million employees worked in coal supply— programmes. Several countries where historic transitions from coal
3.4 million in China, 1.4 million in India, and another 790 000 in other have taken place provided policy and financial support for miners to
Asia Pacific countries. These jobs are predominately in mining, and assume new employment. In the United States, former miners have
also cover the transport, washing, and processing of coal, as well as been upskilled to work on wind turbines and rooftop solar installation,
the manufacturing of specialised mining and conveying equipment. and in IT. Coal miners can also transfer to jobs in the growing critical
Coal mining is labour-intensive, despite significant improvements in minerals industry if the geographies of resources are compatible.

PAGE | 26
Most coal supply employees are miners, whose jobs are highly geographically concentrated,
making these workers particularly vulnerable in the energy transition
Employment in coal supply by economic sector and asset life stage, 2019
4.0
Million employees
3.5
3.0
2.5
2.0 35%
1.5 65%
1.0
0.5
0

Note: This figure includes coal production and transportation, but excludes coal transformation for blast furnaces and coke ovens.

PAGE | 27
The quality of energy jobs is an important factor, especially when transitioning workers
When assessing the just transition, the quality of clean energy jobs is These dynamics are not always consistent in EMDEs. Energy jobs
as important as their quantity. Key criteria determining job quality remain on average better paid, however, many are temporary and
include wages, medical insurance, retirement and other benefits, job informal. This includes a wide-range of work, from coal and critical
security, terms of employment, occupational safety standards, union minerals mining, construction, harvesting crops for biofuels or
membership, and overall scope of labour rights. making charcoal, and temporary work at energy facilities, like
cleaning coal power plants during annual maintenance. This work
Globally, energy jobs pay more than the median national wage,
may only represent a small portion of their total labour hours in a
however there are disparities between segments. Workers in less-
year, but can be a sizeable portion of their formal income. Many
established clean energy industries typically earn less than jobs in
countries have clean energy poverty alleviation programmes in rural
the fossil fuel or nuclear industries. For instance, in the United States, areas, such as in China. Programmes for clean cooking and
the median hourly wage premium above the national median for
electricity access solutions often provide training for local workers,
workers in wind and solar is 36% and 28%, respectively, compared
and offer more secure employment and a stepping stone into the
to 39% in oil, 58% in natural gas, and over 100% in nuclear. This is
formal economy.
in part due to the higher skill requirements for many of these jobs, as
well as strong and longer-standing union representation, whereas In EMDEs, clean energy sectors also have lower rates of union
clean energy jobs tend to offer more opportunities to workers with representation. In India, for example, the clean energy sector is
lower levels of post-secondary education and formal qualifications. predominantly private and lacks labour unions, which stands in stark
Clean energy jobs are relatively safer than other sectors, especially contrast to the heavily unionised coal sector where wages and
compared to mining jobs, and as such there is less compensation for benefits are negotiated within committees formally established
occupational hazards. Clean energy employment, especially solar, through the government. Sectors that rely heavily on contract or
also has a larger share of part-time or contract work, and often require part-time staff often do not offer these workers the same labour
workers to travel to work sites far from their homes. They have a protections as permanent employees. This is common in
higher union membership than the national private sector workforce construction for efficiency retrofits, rooftop solar installations,
average, but they remain far less unionised than fossil fuel jobs in bioenergy harvesting, and coal mining, especially in EMDEs.
most geographies with data.

PAGE | 28
Natural gas supply employs 3.9 million workers, with growth in LNG driving hiring
Global natural gas production has grown steadily since 2010, and in relatively high rates of public sector employment are associated with
2019 exceeded 4 100 billion cubic metres (bcm). Following a dip in lower levels of labour productivity. However, many upstream
2020, production rebounded in 2021, while investment almost operations are still outsourced to companies in North America and
recovered. North America, Eurasia, and the Middle East remain the Europe.
regions with the largest shares of production.
With the rebound of production following the pandemic, global
Employment in gas supply by region, 2019 natural gas employment is estimated at 4.5 million in 2021, up
600 000 over 2019 levels. The industry is bracing for the prospects
North America of radically shifting global trade dynamics in the coming years,
Central and South America taking stock of their ability to ramp up production with flexibility. This
Europe is likely to drive up the prevalence of contract-based employment
Eurasia via consultancies and services companies.
Middle East
Employment in production and extraction (denoted as raw
Africa
materials), followed by utilities, dominate the natural gas value
China
chain, with over a million in each. Around 767 000 people work in
Other Asia Pacific
liquefied natural gas (LNG) globally, which is expected to grow,
driven by new facilities.
Focus on seaborne trade of LNG has increased since the Russia

IEA. All rights reserved. Federation (hereafter “Russia”)’s invasion of Ukraine, with 8 bcm of
new projects fast-tracked in 2022. In Canada, where around 0.7% of
Gas supply employment was 3.9 million in 2019, with large shares workers are employed in oil and gas – and over 5% of workers in
in the Asia Pacific (31%), North America (17%), Eurasia (15%) and the province of Alberta – government career services emphasise
the Middle East (15%). National oil and gas companies in countries jobs in LNG to attract oi and gas workers towards a growing
such as Nigeria, Iraq, and Saudi Arabia contribute to a industry short on needed skills in operational management.
disproportionately high share of natural gas employment, because

PAGE | 29
A large share of jobs in natural gas supply are in extracting and producing gas, although LNG is
driving growth in new asset construction
Employment in gas supply by economic sector and asset life stage, 2019
1.4
Million employees
1.2
1.0
0.8
45%
55%
0.6
0.4
0.2
0

Note: This figure includes employment in natural gas production, transportation, and liquefaction (LNG).

PAGE | 30
Bioenergy supply employs roughly 3.3 million, with a large share working in agricultural roles
Global biofuel energy supply was 2 million barrels of oil equivalent losing up to a quarter of its palm oil yield due to a labour force
per day (mboe/d) in 2019, and combined biogas and biomethane shortfall worsened by travel restrictions for migrant workers. The
supply were 2 exajoules (EJ), with a stable pipeline of new ongoing global price spikes brought on by Russia’s invasion of
production facilities coming online in the next few years. Modern Ukraine are reinforcing political support for bioenergy production, as
solid biomass supply, which includes charcoal, pellets, crop is the case in Brazil and Indonesia, although global food security
residues and waste, reached 31 EJ in 2019. concerns are creating countervailing pressures as well.
Around 3.3 million people globally worked in bioenergy supply in Employment in bioenergy supply by region, 2019
2019. The production of commercial biofuels is a major driver for
employment in agriculture, especially in countries like Brazil, North America
Indonesia, and the United States. Biogas and bioenergy for power Central and South America
and heat play a larger role in Europe. The collection of firewood and Europe
other agricultural residues plays an important role in EMDEs for the Africa
China
traditional use of bioenergy in cooking, which we are not able to fully
India
capture in our employment estimates.
Other Asia Pacific
Almost one-third of workers are dedicated to producing and Rest of world
collecting agricultural feedstock and another one-third are in the
development and operations of processing facilities. Employment in
feedstock processing varies by regions and often features seasonal
labour. In EMDEs these activities are considerably more labour- IEA. All rights reserved.
intensive than in advanced economies, where these tasks are more The majority of bioenergy employment is in rural areas, and relies
mechanised. on workers skilled with operating agricultural machinery, as well as
manual labour for the processing of feedstocks. The production of
Three-quarters of bioenergy jobs are connected to operating
liquid biofuels is often coincident with existing refinery operations,
existing supply chains, with the construction of new facilities driving
and draws heavily upon existing petrochemical industry expertise
less than a quarter of new jobs. The Covid-19 pandemic impacted
and employment base. The same applies to biomethane production,
feedstock harvest and biofuels shipping globally, with Malaysia
of which a large share is integrated with existing gas businesses.

PAGE | 31
World Energy Employment Power sector
Power sector

PAGE | 32
Power generation employs 11.3 million worldwide, of which 6.8 million are in renewables
Global power capacity neared 7 500 GW in 2019, spanning 30 000 Overall, power generation employment includes 2.6 million workers
power plants and a multitude of distributed generation sources. in manufacturing transformers, turbines, compressors, and solar
Capacity has grown at an average of 4% per year over the past panels; 4.0 million construction workers building power plants,
decade, with new additions shifting quickly toward renewables. dams, mounting systems; and 3.8 million in utilities and in
professional roles such as project finance and procurement.
The power sector has the potential to reshape global energy
demand and supply through the electrification of end uses combined Employment in power generation by technology, 2019
with the ongoing transition towards low-emissions sources of
electricity. The realisation of this transformation will depend on
having the requisite workforce to deploy new capacity and retrofit Solar PV
existing capacity, and on training workers adequately when shifting
between different power sectors. Coal
Power generation employment totalled 11.2 million in 2019, Hydro

comprised of 3 million in solar PV, 2 million in coal power, and
1.9 million in hydro. Wind power, including onshore and offshore, Oil and gas
employed 1.2 million and nuclear power 1 million. Employment in
other renewables totalled some 710 000 employees. Over 60% of Wind
workers are employed in the deployment of capacity additions, while
the other almost 40% work in the operations and maintenance of Nuclear
existing facilities.
About two-fifths of power sector employment is for the operations Other renewables
and maintenance (O&M) of existing capacity, across the utilities,
professional, wholesale and transport economic sectors. Coal and 0 0.5 1.0 1.5 2.0 2.5 3.0 3.5
hydro power have the highest numbers of O&M employees, while Million employees
nuclear is among the most labour-intensive in terms of staff working
in O&M per GW installed.

PAGE | 33
Solar PV has 3 million employees, with manufacturing jobs highly concentrated in China
Solar PV capacity worldwide stood at 740 GW in 2019, comprising Residential solar panels are often installed by construction workers
425 GW of utility-scale solar PV installations and 315 GW of and electricians who also work on other projects, such that many
building panels. Global investment in solar PV reached USD 215 solar PV jobs are not full-time, and it can be difficult to count
billion in 2021, having seen over 5% annual average growth over employees accurately. For example, the United States Energy and
the previous decade. This burgeoning sector is expected to see Employment Report (USEER) reported 28% of solar PV workers
continued growth in annual capacity installations globally in every spent less than half of their time on solar PV-related work. The
IEA scenario. shortage of a skilled labour force is prevalent in this industry as well,
for instance hindering the development of large-scale solar in
As of 2019, there were over 3 million employed in solar PV value
Australia.
chains, and increased to an estimated 3.4 million in 2021. Almost
half were employed in China. North America had almost 280 000 Employment in solar PV by region, 2019
solar PV workers, and Europe had more than 260 000. Africa had
around 50 000 working in solar PV, and this number has high North America
potential for growth as both on- and off-grid solar solutions
Central and South America
proliferate to provide electricity access.
Europe
Correspondingly, a large majority of employees in solar PV are Africa
engaged in the manufacturing and installation of new capacity. The
China
new investments are expected to create jobs split between
India
manufacturing and construction. Manufacturing jobs are strongly
concentrated in just a few countries, with China in the lead with Other Asia Pacific
260 000 workers in the production of polysilicon, wafers, cells, and Rest of world
modules alone. Research and innovation are powering the latest-
generation PV panel factories across other countries.
The employment impacts of installing building-scale versus utility- IEA. All rights reserved.
scale solar PV differ. The installation of building-scale solar PV is

about four times more labour-intensive than utility-scale solar PV.

PAGE | 34
Solar PV employees are primarily engaged in building and installing new capacity, in line with
the sector’s steady growth
Employment in solar PV by economic sector and asset life stage, 2019
1 500
Thousand employees
1 250
Existing capacity
1 000
New investment
750
500
250
0
Manufacturing Construction Professionals and Wholesale and
utilities transport

PAGE | 35
Coal power employs 2 million globally, largely concentrated in emerging market and developing
economies in Asia, including a high share of informal workers
Coal capacity worldwide stands at 2 100 GW in 2021, of which of the power generation value chain, such as turbine manufacturing
three-quarters is located in the Asia Pacific region. Coal meets and engineering, including redesigning power plant equipment for
around half of the electricity demand in EMDEs. Capacity additions co-firing or running with carbon capture, utilisation and storage
that are currently planned correspond to projected investment (CCUS), which are being pursued at pilot scale in certain regions.
averaging USD 40 billion per year to 2025.
Employment in coal power generation by region, 2019
Global coal power employment totalled 2 million in 2019 and was
largely concentrated in Asian EMDEs. An estimated 740 000 were North America
employed in China and another 600 000 in India, where around one Central and South America
in four are informal workers, not included in company records but
Europe
contributing as plant operators and in elementary occupations.
Africa
Despite the decrease in coal-fired power generation in Europe,
China
150 000 were still employed as of 2019.
India
With an unprecedented number of countries committing to phase Other Asia Pacific
out unabated coal-fired power at COP26, 750 plants around the Rest of world
world (550 GW) now have effective close-by dates. China, Japan,
and Korea have all pledged to end public support for new unabated
coal plants overseas. As such, we estimate that almost 20% of jobs IEA. All rights reserved.
in coal power O&M are at risk globally in the clean energy transition.
However, foresight is required to prevent and minimise the negative
However, a significant share of integrated utilities or power
impacts of potential transition-related layoffs. Many governments
generation companies are looking to redeploy their current staff
are preparing strategies to protect affected coal power workers. For
working at coal-fired power plants elsewhere in their businesses,
example, Japan is developing ammonia co-firing technology, which
with many possessing transferable skills for operating other power
will help plants to avoid rapid closure. Similarly, some coal power
plant facilities, or able to be upskilled as needed. Manufacturers of
plants in Romania will be replaced with gas units, although these
coal power equipment can also find new opportunities in other parts
tend to be less labour-intensive to operate and maintain.

PAGE | 36
Coal power employment is concentrated in operations, which poses transition risks as coal-fired
plants close
Employment in coal power generation by economic sector and asset life stage, 2019
1 250
Thousand employees
1 000
Existing capacity
750
New investment
500
250
0
Manufacturing Construction Professionals and Wholesale and
utilities transport

PAGE | 37
Wind power employs 1.2 million, with supply chains concentrated in Europe and China
Wind capacity worldwide stood at around 625 GW as of 2019, Employment in wind by region, 2019
comprising 600 GW onshore and 30 GW offshore. The sector’s
growth has proven relatively resilient to recent disruptions. Capacity North America
additions grew in 2020 despite the Covid-19 crisis, and reached Central and South America
around 95 GW in 2021, 60% more than in 2019. Global investment
Europe
in wind totalled USD 145 billion in 2021.
Africa
As of 2019, there were 1.2 million employed in wind power—over China
500 000 employed in China, 300 000 in Europe, and 144 000 in India
North America. By 2021, an estimated 1.3 million were employed in Other Asia Pacific
wind power. Onshore wind accounts for about four-fifths,
Rest of world
corresponding to its higher share of existing capacity as well as
greater planned capacity additions. As with solar PV, the most
labour-intensive part of the deployment of wind power is the build-
out of new assets. Over 80% of those employed in wind power work
in the manufacturing and installation of new turbines. Employment in offshore wind totals around 210 000 globally, and is
mainly concentrated in Europe and in China. Training needs are a
Wind manufacturing capacity worldwide of nacelles, blades, towers, particular concern for the offshore wind industry, especially for
generators, gearboxes and bearings is already closely aligned with workers to learn safety protocols relevant to working at heights and
expected capacity additions in the coming years, such that wind is survival at sea. The construction of dedicated port and ship
less likely to see a large uptick in manufacturing capacity and infrastructure for offshore wind development is also a driver of new
corresponding employment in the coming years as solar PV. China employment, which has received government support under several
and Denmark are among the few countries which have the capacity recovery plans. Oil and gas workers can transfer their skills to
for manufacturing all of the above components, with jobs sustained offshore wind if properly retrained.
by exports to other countries.

PAGE | 38
Wind manufacturing employment capacity is largely in line with expected new installations in the
coming years, but growth in offshore wind will demand more diverse skill sets
Employment in wind by economic sector and asset life stage, 2019

500
Thousand employees
400 Existing capacity
New investment
300
200
100
0
Manufacturing Construction Professionals and Wholesale and transport
utilities

PAGE | 39
Oil and gas power employment totals 1.4 million, with the most workers in the Middle East, North
America, and Asia Pacific
Globally, the total installed capacity of natural gas power plants was Employment in oil and gas power generation by technology and
1 790 GW in 2019, whereas oil power generation capacity, region, 2019
comprising both power plants and diesel gensets, stood at 430 GW.
1 200
Capacity has grown by 75 GW and declined by 20 GW, Eurasia
Thousand employees
respectively, since then. Together, they account for almost 30% of 1 000 Middle East
global power capacity. North America and the Middle East have 800 Asia Pacific
over 40% of this capacity, while growth is expected in the Asia
Pacific, Middle East, and Africa. Investment for oil and gas power in 600 Africa
2021 was around USD 65 billion, a small share (7%) of total power 400 Europe
generation investment, reflective of low upfront costs. C and S America
200
Employment for gas-fired power generation was around 1.2 million North America
0
worldwide in 2019. Fewer people are needed onsite for natural gas
Oil power Gas power
generators, such that employment related to new investment versus generation generation
operating existing capacity accounts for 44% and 56%, respectively.
Upstream manufacturing of generators and specialised pumps and IEA. All rights reserved.
compressors is concentrated in advanced economies.

During the energy transition, the jobs of oil and gas power plant
Oil-fuelled power generation has a smaller labour force of 200 000 workers may be at risk, though with a more gradual shift than coal
employees, with almost one-third located in the Middle East. plant workers. Manufacturers of turbines as well as construction
However, in places where low reliability plagues the grid, such as in workers can likely transfer their skills to the deployment of other
Africa, there are a fair number of people informally employed in the power technologies, and towards updating existing turbine designs
resale, maintenance, and operation of diesel gensets. to use a higher mix of hydrogen and other clean fuels in the future.

PAGE | 40
Power transmission, distribution, and storage employ 8.5 million with strong demand for
expansion projects expected to drive growth in the labour force
Grid operators currently manage around 80 million km of electricity skills. Regions with low levels of smart grid deployment see three-
networks globally. In 2021, USD 310 billion of investment went into times higher labour intensity than regions with higher levels.
expanding and upgrading existing networks. Investment in electricity
networks declined from 2016 to 2020, but recovery plans after Employment in power grids by technology and region, 2019
Covid-19 are sharply driving up demand for new grid expansion 7 Rest of world
Million employees
projects, especially in China, Europe, and the United States. 6 Other Asia Pacific
Around 8.5 million are employed in the power transmission and 5 India
distribution (T&D) sector, excluding storage. Over half of these jobs 4 China
are in the utilities sector, which is the dominant economic activity in Africa
3
all regions except China, where continued expansion of new T&D Europe
networks resulted in slightly more workers in construction. Globally, 2
C and S America
around 40% of T&D jobs are in the construction of new grids. Over 1
North America
a quarter of all T&D workers are employed in China. However, the 0
operation of existing grids means that total employment is spread Transmission Distribution
relatively evenly across regions, somewhat proportionate to their
size. In Africa, power sector employment is also driven by objectives
Notes: C and S America = Central and South America. Distribution in this figure
to achieve universal access to electricity, making the production and includes employment for battery storage.
distribution of mini- or off-grid solutions major drivers of
Utility-scale battery storage installations reached almost 10 GW
employment.
worldwide in 2020, and are expected to expand in the coming years.
The bulk of grid-related employment is focused on the operation of Electricity storage employed around 65 000 people in 2019, with
distribution systems, which involves maintaining power lines and over 40% located in China. Jobs in manufacturing battery cells and
customer support for meter reading and billing. The uptick in smart components are geographically concentrated in China, as is the
metering and other grid digitalisation is reducing the labour intensity processing of upstream materials, although critical minerals
of operating and maintaining grids while increasing the need for IT reserves, particularly of lithium, are more geographically diverse.

PAGE | 41
Providing universal access to electricity and clean cooking is a major driver of energy
employment in developing regions, especially in Africa
Approximately 770 million people in the world still lack access to Improving clean cooking solutions can significantly reduce health
electricity and 2.5 billion do not have access to clean cooking as of and environmental damages, while creating a significant number
2021. Reaching universal access by 2030 is a goal canonised in of jobs, and thus promoting community development. Clean
the Sustainable Development Goals, and working toward this cooking jobs include manufacturing and sale of modern
creates sizeable employment opportunities in EMDEs. Access- cookstoves, in fuel distribution and retailing, and also in upstream
related jobs can often provide an important stepping stone into fuel delivery supply chains, whether that be for terminals and filling
formalised employment for those without formal job training. stations for liquified petroleum gases (LPG) or charcoal
production. Biogas digester manufacturing, installation, and
Three in every four people without access to electricity live in
maintenance are also a growing area of interest in the clean
Africa. The pursuit of universal access by 2030 in this region would
cooking space.
create around 1.8 million full-time equivalent jobs between 2021
and 2030, as presented in the IEA’s Sustainable Africa Scenario. The roles created are diverse, requiring both skilled and unskilled
These jobs include electricians and construction workers labour. However, at all levels technical and managerial skills are
extending grid infrastructure (including putting up poles which can required. Safety training is particularly pertinent given the risks
be done by untrained workers), wiring houses for grid connections, associated with many of these fields, such as the transport and
and installing new generation facilities. However, over 60% of filling of LPG canisters, and electrical wiring. Training for these
those jobs are related to the distribution, sale, assembly, and roles can help improve access to gainful employment for people in
installation of distributed access solutions, especially solar home rural areas, particularly women and youth. Many of Africa’s and
systems which have grown at similar paces as solar PV over the developing Asia’s most prominent access-oriented companies are
2015-2019 period and are expected to play a major role in run by female entrepreneurs, who often better understand the
providing distributed access in Africa. challenges faced when working with households first gaining
access to electricity and clean cooking solutions.

PAGE | 42
World Energy Employment Energy end use and efficiency
Energy end use and

efficiency

PAGE | 43
Around 2.5% of manufacturing workers worldwide are employed to produce road vehicles, with
EVs powering growth in employment
Global road vehicle sales totalled around 175 million in 2021. Of with 20%. Following the dip during the pandemic, 2021 global
these sales, almost 110 million were in the Asia Pacific, and over employment in vehicle manufacturing is estimated to have
20 million each in North America and Europe. Following a dip during rebounded to 12 million.
the pandemic, sales of electric vehicles (EVs), which include battery
electric and plug-in hybrids, have also rebounded exponentially, Employment in vehicle manufacturing by region, 2019
reaching a new record of 18 million—10% of total vehicle sales in 12.5
Rest of world
Million employees
2021. Despite strains along global supply chains, sales continued to
10.0 Other Asia Pacific
rise strongly into 2022. Manufacturing of EVs and battery chargers
India
is expected to be one of the largest areas of employment growth for
7.5
the energy sector in the coming years. China
5.0 Africa
Around 12.7 million were employed in road vehicle manufacturing in
Europe
2019, 1 constituting around 2.5% of total manufacturing employment 2.5
worldwide. Beyond direct employees, up to five times more are C and S America
indirectly employed in related manufacturing and service provision 0 North America
such as vehicle maintenance, which is outside the scope of this Internal combustion Electric vehicles
report. Including those manufacturing batteries for electric vehicles, engine vehicles
employment totals almost 13.6 million. IEA. All rights reserved.

Notes: C and S America = Central and South America.
Prior to the pandemic, global vehicles manufacturing employment
increased steadily year-on-year, with the growth in Asia Pacific. Of the 12.7 million workers in the vehicles sector in 2019, around
Currently, around one-third of vehicle manufacturing jobs are in 460 000 were employed in EVs manufacturing, which is highly
China, with another 16% in the rest of Asia Pacific. Europe follows regionally concentrated, with over 60% in China. Decisions across
1
This employment includes passenger cars, commercial vehicles, buses, and trucks. Employment
in other forms of transportation such as rail, aviation, and shipping is not included. Jobs in the
retail and maintenance of vehicles are not included.

PAGE | 44
countries about whether or not to increase domestic manufacturing vehicle manufacturing as well as an increase in the use of
capacity of EVs and their batteries will determine how employment temporary workers to achieve flexibility in the labour force. This may
by region shifts in the coming years, as exponentially more EVs are lead to decreased job security, but can improve job quality for
deployed. workers, for example via the adoption of exoskeletons (robotic suits
that reduce the physical strain caused by repetitive tasks).
As EVs have fewer components and are simpler to assemble, the
Automobile labour unions are calling for increased support to retrain
labour intensity for manufacturing them may be lower than that of
workers on manufacturing EVs, and demanding higher wages and
vehicles with internal combustion engines. However, when
worker protections during the transition.
accounting for the manufacture of the requisite batteries and related
charging infrastructure, EVs could be roughly as labour-intensive
across the entire value chain. We estimate around 850 000 jobs are
in the EV batteries value chains. Beyond direct manufacturing,
automakers are increasingly focusing their R&D and design teams
toward new lines dominated by EVs, with many announcing
expanded EV line-ups in the coming years. Accounting for these
workers means that the EV workforce is disproportionate to their
total sales today. On top of this, the development of EV charging
networks requires jobs in manufacturing, installation, and upkeep.
Electric utilities and fuelling stations are increasingly playing a role
in this segment, as are EV automobile manufacturers like Tesla.
Based on projected EV sales for 2022, EV and battery

manufacturing are set to be one of the largest areas of employment
growth for energy in the coming years. Major EV battery
manufacturers are reporting a shortfall in the skilled labour force to
staff their facilities, highlighting an important gap in the growing
sector, and prompting companies to improve their employment
packages to attract talent. This is also driving further automation in

PAGE | 45
Efficiency in buildings and industry employs 10.9 million with China accounting for one-third
Global investment in building retrofits and efficient new construction, Many efficiency jobs rely heavily on local supply chains, such as
as well as for more energy-efficient appliances, vehicles and contractors and local programme administrators. The lack of trained
industrial equipment, neared USD 330 million in 2021, a rise of personnel can be detrimental to the quality of installations or
around 14% from 2019 levels. Most energy efficiency measures, in retrofits and negatively affect the energy saving potential of an
particular in the buildings sector, are highly labour-intensive. In this intervention. This makes training and vetting vendors a major
report, we assess the job creation from building retrofits, challenge, and there is a growing focus for many efficiency
construction of energy efficient new buildings (the incremental programmes to provide the appropriate skilling and certifications.
employment compared to standard practice), heat pumps, industrial Technical and vocational education and training can be helpful for
efficiency retrofits, energy management systems and the workforce preparation.
manufacture of efficient building materials. While difficult to
disentangle data, we try to isolate the jobs that require energy Employment in energy efficiency by region, 2019
efficiency skill sets and knowledge to be completed.
North America
Worldwide, around 10.9 million people worked in energy efficiency
Central and South America
in buildings and industry in 2019, with China accounting for just over
one-third of these jobs followed by around 2 million in North Europe
America. Nearly half of all efficiency jobs worldwide are in the Africa
construction sector. China
India
The Covid-19 pandemic initially reduced those working in energy
Other Asia Pacific
efficiency as social distancing requirements prevented contractors
Rest of world
from gaining access to residential properties to perform retrofits,
leading to notable declines in efficiency employment in the United
States and elsewhere. However, energy efficiency has featured
prominently in economic recovery packages targeting both public IEA. All rights reserved.
and private residential buildings over the last two years, totalling
more than USD 72 billion worldwide as of March 2022.

PAGE | 46
Energy efficiency measures are typically very labour-intensive in construction
Employment in buildings energy efficiency, 2019 Employment in industry energy efficiency, 2019
3.0 3.0
Million employees
2.5 2.5
2.0 2.0
1.5 1.5
1.0 1.0
0.5 0.5
0 0
Manufacturing Construction Other Manufacturing Construction Other
Notes: HVAC = Heating, ventilation, and air conditioning. Other includes employment in utilities, professional, wholesale, and transport sectors.

PAGE | 47
World Energy Employment Looking forward
Looking forward

PAGE | 48
Employment will grow as the world decarbonises the energy sector in line with global targets
Employment in clean energy is set to grow in all IEA scenarios. In Employment by scenario and by subsector, 2019-2030
the World Energy Outlook 2021, employment impacts were Gains or
Coal
evaluated in two scenarios: the Announced Pledges Scenario (APS) Oil and gas
losses
where all announced climate pledges were met in time and in full, Critical minerals APS
and the Net Zero Emissions by 2050 Scenario, which is consistent End-use renewables NZE
Bioenergy Net jobs
with limiting global surface temperature warming to 1.5 °C by 2100. Innovative technologies APS
Cars
In both scenarios, job growth more than offsets a decline in Grids
NZE
traditional fossil fuel supply sectors. We estimate that an additional Efficiency
13 million workers are employed in clean energy and related sectors Power generation
by 2030 in the APS, and this figure doubles in the NZE. Many of the -4 -2 0 2 4 6 8
jobs lost are not necessarily where new jobs are created. Skill sets Total
are also not automatically transferable, and new skills are needed. -16 -8 0 8 16 24 32
This is true both within countries and internationally. Million jobs
Quantifying the employment effects of energy transitions facilitates
proper planning of support measures including training and As transitions gain pace, there will be increased competition for
education programmes. Countries are designing programmes that clean energy supply chains and related jobs. Most clean energy
seek to take advantage of existing strengths in fossil fuel sectors to jobs are created in the same location of a project, whether it is a
support emerging areas such as offshore wind, CCUS, geothermal solar farm construction or energy-efficiency retrofits. However, clean
and hydrogen. The United Kingdom’s North Sea Transition Deal is energy supply chains extend around the globe. Some governments
one such example. Other countries, including South Africa, have are looking to localise these supply chains, and are making strategic
instituted broad social dialogue on just and inclusive transitions, investments in low-carbon technologies such as advanced batteries
encompassing companies, trade unions, regional and local and low-carbon fuels. Favouring domestic manufacturing capacity
governments, civil society and the financial sector. can lead to more secure supply chains, but can also drive up clean
energy technology costs if it poses barriers to trade and reduces
economies of scale.

PAGE | 49
Governments and companies are looking to better equip their workers and industries for energy
transitions
The IEA’s Global Commission on People-Centred Clean Energy by energy sector workers today and the skills needed in the fastest
Transitions brought together global leaders to enumerate key growing clean energy segments.
principles for maximising the benefits of clean energy transitions for
Just transition policy making is an increasingly common practice
people. Their recommendations related to energy sector
to support workers and communities in fossil fuel industries set for
employment include: 1) maximising the creation of decent jobs, 2)
closure as part of efforts to decarbonise. So far, the majority of
developing tailored government support for communities and
these plans target coal communities, but long-term support for oil
workers as well as opportunities for reskilling and training, and 3)
and gas producers to diversify are also becoming more prevalent.
using robust stakeholder engagement, social dialogue, and policy
Companies who see a declining workforce have worked with labour
co-ordination across ministries of energy, employment, and
representation to establish long-term plans, and offer early
education to deliver better outcomes. Policies embodying these
retirement packages to workers. International support for just
principles differ across regions, but best practices are beginning to
energy transitions plans (JETP) is becoming a much-discussed tool,
emerge.
with advanced economies committing climate finance to help
Worker training—an omnipresent need—intensifies with clean producer economies accelerate their transitions away from fossil
energy transitions. Well-crafted training programmes are a first fuels, as was done in South Africa and as is under discussion in
response to equip employees with an energy transition-ready other EMDEs.
knowledge base, leveraging their existing competencies. In the
Finally, social dialogue with unions, employers, civil society and
IEA’s Net Zero Emissions by 2050 Scenario, 60% of energy
government is a cross-cutting theme for all decision making in this
employment growth to 2030 requires at least two years of post-
space. This includes robust stakeholder engagement – such as with
secondary education. Reskilling through programmes offering
communities, international organisations, academia and civil
certifications and on-the-job training is a key alternative to formal
society, including youth participation – in the design of labour
education for experienced energy workers considering a career
transition plans, collective bargaining agreements, developing
switch. Developing effective training necessitates tighter co-
labour standards, and on topics of diversity and inclusion. Large-
ordination between public institutions, private sector, and academia
scale engagement can be time-consuming, but can save time later
to keep curriculum up to date. Expanding worker training
on, and helps arrive at more durable outcomes for clean energy
programmes and designing new curriculum, in particular for so-
policy design and worker arrangements within energy employment.
called “green jobs”, requires a better understanding of the skills held

PAGE | 50
Clean energy innovation demands highly trained workers and could grow immensely this decade
Emerging clean energy industries such as hydrogen and CCUS subsequent decades of operations. Retrofitting plants to use CCUS
constitute small portions of the energy workforce today, but they are may also provide continuity of employment for existing plants. For
important areas of growth, demanding highly skilled workers to example, developers of the United Kingdom’s Net Zero Teesside
establish and expand these industries. Clean energy innovation is industrial hub envision that CCUS infrastructure could safeguard
labour-intensive and is supported by growing investment in research between 35% and 70% of existing power plant manufacturing jobs
and development (R&D). In 2020, around 750 000 people worked in in the region. However, only 12 CCUS projects for gas power plants
energy R&D, of whom half were in China, Japan, the United States, are currently under development, mostly located in North America.
France, and Germany. Government support can help innovative
Among the critical minerals, copper, cobalt, nickel and lithium are
start-ups to expand operations, since early-stage R&D requires only
vital inputs for batteries, hydrogen electrolysers, grids, solar panels
a limited number of highly skilled workers and tends to be
and wind turbines. We estimate around 800 000 people worked in
geographically concentrated around university centres or tech hubs.
the mining of these four minerals in 2019. Demand for these four
Around 35 000 work in hydrogen production today, by estimates minerals is expected to grow between two- and 16-fold from 2020 to
based on IEA investment data and energy balances, and other 2030 under scenarios consistent with global climate ambitions.
inputs. This sector is also expected to see high growth rates in a net Miners face substantial occupational health hazards and risks of
zero world, requiring skills that are potentially compatible with those human rights violations, especially in artisanal and small-scale
of oil and gas workers, but requiring specialised safety training. The operations where regulatory standards are weak and health care or
European HySafe consortium has developed the world’s first compensation in the event of an accident are often non-existent.
engineering courses in hydrogen safety. Similar worker training will Increased commitments to environmental, social, and governance
be important for ensuring the labour supply requisite to scale-up (ESG) standards along the entire value chain can improve safety
hydrogen production rapidly. and labour conditions. Efforts to recycle these materials are also
increasing and further mechanisation of mining processes may
CCUS demonstration projects have created many jobs, particularly
reduce the need for unskilled miners. Automation can also enable
during the construction phase of new pilot plants. An average stand-
remote mining operations from offices, greatly improving safety,
alone CCUS plant can create up to 1 200 jobs for an estimated
while employing less labour.
three-year construction phase and up to 60 jobs during the

PAGE | 51
Improving energy employment data provides a foundation for better energy and labour policy
Improved energy employment data provides an important basis for These surveys are expensive to administer, but have a track
estimating how energy policies affect workers and a foundation for record of securing funding in different countries. For example,
assessing both the potential risks of labour shortages as well as the there are ongoing efforts in the Australian government to establish
growing needs for education and skilling. National labour statistics are a granular energy labour report, to be completed in June 2023.
typically structured based on codes consistent with the International These surveys enable accurate projections necessary for
Standard Industry Classification (ISIC) system. As shown in the governments and training providers to design adequate workforce
International Recommendations for Energy Statistics, ISIC codes align development programmes, and to ensure that labour shortages do
well with traditional energy industries, but do not map directly onto not hinder clean energy deployment. Survey outcomes are also
emerging energy industries such as solar and wind. Furthermore, useful for companies tendering projects as well as local policy
many jobs impacted upstream by changing dynamics in energy makers assessing ex-post how their spending supported job
production are not listed within a single code, but rather separately creation in their communities.
accounted for under general codes like manufacturing or construction.
Beyond establishing a baseline on employment, data on wages
One way to systematically improve energy employment data is to and labour cost, skilling needs, and demographics also help to
create new codes specific to emerging energy segments. For enhance decision making for key energy stakeholders. This data
instance, in June 2022, the Chinese Ministry of Human Resources and informs master plans for skilling and education within energy and
Social Security updated its occupation classification scheme to include labour ministries, and helps to assess the impacts of diversity and
new categories for jobs related to the green economy, such as carbon inclusion initiatives. It also contributes to the good design of just
sink assessors and integrated energy service workers. transition plans, including appropriate worker support and
compensation.
Codes have also been added in the United States to achieve a holistic
and consistent view of energy jobs across emerging technologies. While this report provides many of the above-mentioned data
Additionally, the US government administers a survey that cuts across points, it is not a substitute for better data collection, especially
industry classifications. This survey yields the United States Energy when it comes to subnational data. Enhancing these data
and Employment Report (USEER), one of the earliest resources which foundations can be a near-term priority for policy makers looking to
provides annual national accounting for energy jobs and wages. take concrete steps related to advancing people-centred energy
transitions.

PAGE | 52
Next steps
As part of our continued efforts to inform governments and other
stakeholders in their design of energy policies and their
understanding of the human impact of these policies, the IEA will
publish forward-looking projections on energy employment by
scenario over the next decade in the World Energy Outlook 2022.
The projections will show the expected magnitude of changes in
energy sector employment as an increasing number of countries
commit to net zero emissions targets and as energy value chains
shift in response to major disruptions such as the Covid-19
pandemic and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Additionally, the IEA aims to update this assessment of energy

employment annually to continue to provide a baseline for
understanding how global energy employment is shifting over time.
As we continue to develop this area of work, we welcome
suggestions and collaboration. Please direct inquiries to
weo@iea.org.

PAGE | 53
World Energy Employment Annexes
Annexes

PAGE | 54
Methodology
Modelling is based on IEA’s energy balances as well as energy • Identifying the cost contribution breakdown for USD 1 million
investment data, and calibrated based on a rich collection of spent on new projects or products for regions with existing multipliers
employment data in the 2010s from the following sources: (e.g. 10% labour, 50% materials, 10% equipment costs). These
breakdowns were derived using detailed manufacturer surveys,
• National statistics for all major countries primarily from the US Annual Survey of Manufacturers data which
• International Labour Organization (ILO) employment databases provide information on the contribution to costs of average wages,
labour and materials. Industry evaluation was used to confirm
• United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO)
breakdowns or provide more granular detail for specific technology
IndStat and MinStat databases
types.
• Reports by international organisations and industry associations
• Adapting the cost contribution breakdown to each region, taking
• Academic literature specific account of how differences in wages and material costs
• Annual reports of major companies in each sector shift the relative shares of labour and material. Average wages and
• Company interviews basic material costs were indexed on the basis of US costs, and
these were applied to the labour and material costs for a
The employment numbers in this report represent our best USD 1 million project or purchase to calculate how much that same
purchase would cost to produce in a low-wage economy. We
estimates of employment across the energy sector based on
utilised local wages, average cost differential of input materials,
currently available data. They are published to help governments share of imports in production and the costs of those imports to
and other stakeholders to understand the magnitude of the impacts arrive at adjusted cost contribution breakdowns for various regions.
of energy policy and investment on workers, but given the • Finding average wages for relevant jobs in a region by using
uncertainty that exists, they are clearly not the last word. We aim to national average salary information specific to a subsector. Where
update our estimates as new and improved data become available. information on wages specific to a subsector was not available,
average wages from salary reporting websites were used, splitting
Where data was missing for certain years, energy subsectors, or the labour costs to distinguish between those associated with
countries, employment multipliers were applied based on the production and manufacturing and those associated with overheads
corresponding volumes and investment values in IEA energy (e.g. research and development, procurement and marketing).
balances. Regional multipliers were constructed based on wage • Calculating jobs per million dollars for the expenditure by
differences. The steps included: dividing the portion spent on salaries by average salaries. The
indirect multiplier for advanced economies was used as a basis for

PAGE | 55
indirect jobs, and the rectification multiplier for each country was we calculate part-time workers with a proportion. Otherwise part-
applied to calculate indirect jobs. time employment is assumed as 0.5 FTE.
The final employment multipliers were integrated with the World Employment numbers include informal workers, with the hope that
Energy Model by applying the multipliers to the appropriate sector our numbers reflect the scope of energy policy impact more
and regional investments. completely. In alignment with ILO definitions, informal workers
comprise own-account workers and all those employed in informal
sector enterprises; contributing family workers; employees holding
Definition and scope of employment informal jobs; members of informal producers’ cooperatives; and
The definitions used in this report are: own-account workers engaged in the production of goods
exclusively for own final use by their own household. Estimates are
• Direct: Jobs created to deliver a final project or product. These are based on a literature review of informality rates by region and
counted in this report. sector.
• Indirect: Supply chain jobs created to provide inputs to a final
project or product. Only inputs that are predominantly demanded by This report does not address employment in the following energy
the energy industry are counted in this report. sectors, among others, which will be covered in forthcoming
• Induced: Jobs created by wages earned from the energy sector and reports:
spent in other parts of the economy, thereby creating additional
jobs. These jobs are not counted in this report. • Coal transformation for blast furnaces and coke ovens
• Fossil fuel downstream distribution, for example workers in petrol
stations and workers in gas utilities
In this report’s accounting, employment encompasses all direct jobs
• Uranium mining and processing for nuclear power
and the indirect jobs from suppliers providing immediate inputs to
the sector considered. Induced jobs are not included. This sets a • End-use renewables such as geothermal or solar heating for
buildings or biomass boilers
clear boundary around the jobs that the upfront investment would
• Efficiency jobs related to appliances and lighting in buildings
pay for to deliver the project.
• Manufacturing of non-road vehicles, as well as the servicing and
Jobs are normalised to full-time equivalent (FTE) employment for maintenance of vehicles
consistent accounting. An FTE job represents one person’s work for
one year at regulated norms (e.g. 40 hours a week for 52 weeks a
year, excluding holidays). Where data is available for hours worked,

PAGE | 56
Economic sectors Sample of ISIC codes referenced in employment modelling 1

Employment in this report is presented not only by energy sectors, Code Name
but also by economic sectors (as defined by the ISIC Revision 4 0510 Mining of hard coal
classification system), with significant numbers of workers in the 0520 Mining of lignite
following sectors: 0610 Extraction of crude petroleum

0620 Extraction of natural gas
• Agriculture (code A), in particular for bioenergy production 0892 Extraction of peat
• Mining and quarrying (code B) 0910 Support activities for petroleum and natural gas extraction
• Manufacturing (code C) 1920 Manufacture of refined petroleum products
• Electricity, gas, steam, and air conditioning supply (code D) 2710 Manufacture of electric motors, generators, transformers and
electricity distribution and control apparatus
• Construction (code F)
2720 Manufacture of batteries and accumulators
• Wholesale and retail trade (code G)
2731 Manufacture of fibre optic cables
• Transportation and storage (code H)
2732 Manufacture of other electronic and electric wires and cables
• Professional, scientific, and technical activities (code M) 2733 Manufacture of wiring devices
2815 Manufacture of ovens, furnaces and furnace burners
Throughout the report, the economic sectors are aggregated to five 2824 Manufacture of machinery for mining, quarrying and construction
groupings for simplicity: 2910 Manufacture of motor vehicles
2920 Manufacture of bodies for motor vehicles; manufacture of trailers and
• Raw materials (codes A and B) semi-trailers
• Manufacturing (code C) 2930 Manufacture of parts and accessories for motor vehicles
• Construction (code F) 3510 Electric power generation, transmission and distribution
• Professionals and utilities (code D and M) 4321 Electrical installation
• Wholesale and transport (codes G and H) 4322 Plumbing, heat and air conditioning installation
4661 Wholesale of solid, liquid and gaseous fuels and related products
4930 Transport via pipeline
1
While some of the codes listed correspond in scope directly to their respective energy
subsectors, others are referenced with the understanding that only a subset of the employees
enumerated under these ISIC codes work on energy infrastructure and value chains.

PAGE | 57
Glossary Economic sectors

Construction: Refers to economic activities related to both general
Clean energy: In power, clean energy includes generation from
construction and specialised construction activities for buildings and
renewable sources, nuclear and fossil fuels fitted with CCUS;
civil engineering works; in alignment with ISIC Rev.4 section F. This
battery storage; and electricity grids. In efficiency, clean energy
includes electrical contractors.
includes energy efficiency in buildings, industry and transport,
excluding aviation bunkers and domestic navigation. In end-use Economic sectors: Refers to industry groupings such as mining
applications, clean energy includes direct use of renewables; and quarrying, manufacturing and construction, which are
electric vehicles; electrification in buildings, industry and categorised in accordance with Revision 4 of the International
international marine transport; use of hydrogen and hydrogen- Standard Industrial Classification of All Economic Activities (ISIC
based fuels; CCUS in industry and direct air capture. In fuel supply, Rev.4) – the international reference classification of productive
clean energy includes low emissions fuels liquid biofuels and activities.
biogases, low-carbon hydrogen and hydrogen-based fuels.
Manufacturing: Economic activities related to the physical or
Fossil fuels: Include coal, natural gas, oil and peat. chemical transformation of materials, substances, or components
into new products; in alignment with ISIC Rev.4 section C.
Informal employment: Includes all remunerative work (employees,
self-employed workers) that is not registered, regulated or protected Mining: Economic activities related to the extraction of minerals
by existing legal or regulatory frameworks, as well as non- occurring naturally as solids (coal and ores), liquids (petroleum) or
remunerative work undertaken in an income-producing enterprise in gases (natural gas), as well as the supplementary activities aimed
accordance with guidelines concerning a statistical definition of at preparing the crude materials for marketing; in alignment with
informal employment by the 17th International Conference of Labour ISIC Rev.4 section B named “Mining and quarrying.”
Statisticians.
Professionals: Economic activities related to specialised services
Labour force: All individuals who fulfil the requirements for including legal and accounting, activities in head offices and
inclusion among the employed or the unemployed. The employed management consulting, architecture and engineering, scientific
are defined as those who work for pay or profit for at least one hour research and development, advertising and market research, etc.;
a week. The unemployed are defined as people without work but in alignment with ISIC Rev.4 section M titled “Professional, scientific
actively seeking employment and currently available to start work. and technical activities.”

PAGE | 58
Utilities: Economic activities related to the operation of electric and Asia Pacific: Australia, Bangladesh, Brunei Darussalam,
gas utilities, which generate, control and distribute electric power or Cambodia, Chinese Taipei, Democratic People’s Republic of Korea
gas; in alignment with ISIC Rev.4 section D that is named (North Korea), India, Indonesia, Japan, Korea, Lao People’s
“Electricity, gas, steam and air conditioning supply.” Democratic Republic (Lao PDR), Malaysia, Mongolia, Myanmar,
Nepal, New Zealand, Pakistan, People’s Republic of China (China),
Wholesale: Economic activities related to wholesale and retail sale
Philippines, Singapore, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Viet Nam and other
(i.e. sale without transformation) of any type of goods and the
Asia Pacific countries and territories.
rendering of services incidental to the sale of these goods; in
alignment with ISIC Rev.4 section G, named “Wholesale and retail Central and South America (C and S America): Argentina,
trade; repair of motor vehicles and motorcycles.” Plurinational State of Bolivia (Bolivia), Brazil, Chile, Colombia,
Costa Rica, Cuba, Curaçao, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El
Regional groupings Salvador, Guatemala, Haiti, Honduras, Jamaica, Nicaragua,
Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Suriname, Trinidad and Tobago,
Advanced economies: Australia, Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria,
Uruguay, Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela (Venezuela), and other
Canada, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Croatia, Cyprus1,2, Czech
Central and South American countries and territories.
Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece,
Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Japan, Korea, Latvia, China: Includes the (People’s Republic of) China and Hong Kong,
Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Mexico, Netherlands, New Zealand, China.
Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovak Republic, Slovenia,
Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, United Kingdom and United Emerging market and developing economies (EMDEs): All
States. countries not included in the advanced economies regional
grouping.
Africa: Algeria, Angola, Benin, Botswana, Cameroon, Côte d’Ivoire,
Democratic Republic of the Congo, Egypt, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Gabon, Eurasia: Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan,
Ghana, Kenya, Libya, Mauritius, Morocco, Mozambique, Namibia, Russian Federation (Russia), Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and
Niger, Nigeria, Tunisia, Republic of the Congo (Congo), Senegal, Uzbekistan.
South Africa, South Sudan, Sudan, United Republic of Tanzania Europe: Albania, Austria, Belarus, Belgium, Bosnia and
(Tanzania), Togo, Zambia, Zimbabwe and other African countries Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus1,2, Czech Republic,
and territories. Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Gibraltar, Greece,

PAGE | 59
Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Kosovo, Latvia, Lithuania,

Luxembourg, Malta, Montenegro, Netherlands, North Macedonia,
Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Serbia, Slovak Republic,
Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Republic of Moldova,
Republic of Türkiye (Türkiye), Ukraine and United Kingdom.
North America: Canada, Mexico and United States.
Middle East: Bahrain, Islamic Republic of Iran (Iran), Iraq, Jordan,

Kuwait, Lebanon, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Syrian Arab Republic
(Syria), United Arab Emirates and Yemen.
1
Note by Republic of Türkiye: The information in this document with reference to “Cyprus” relates
to the southern part of the island. There is no single authority representing both Turkish and
Greek Cypriot people on the island. Türkiye recognises the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus
(TRNC). Until a lasting and equitable solution is found within the context of the United Nations,
Türkiye shall preserve its position concerning the “Cyprus issue”.
2
Note by all the European Union Member States of the OECD and the European Union: The
Republic of Cyprus is recognised by all members of the United Nations with the exception of
Türkiye. The information in this document relates to the area under the effective control of the
Government of the Republic of Cyprus.

PAGE | 60
Acknowledgements The work could not have been achieved without the support and
analytical contribution provided by Enel Foundation, in particular by
The World Energy Employment Report was prepared by the World Carlo Papa, Mirko Armiento, Maria Lelli, and Claudio Pregagnoli.
Energy Outlook Division of the Directorate of Sustainability,
Technology and Outlooks of the International Energy Agency. Data from ILO, UNIDO, and national labour statistics were essential
The project was designed and directed by Laura Cozzi, Chief for this analysis. Additionally, contacts from companies including
Energy Modeller. Daniel Wetzel, Head of the Tracking Sustainable Bax Energy, Bitron, COGEPA, Enel, Enertronica Santerno, ENI,
Transitions Unit co-ordinated the analysis and production of the Hitachi, Iberdrola, Infrastructure and Energy Alternatives, Shell and
report. The lead authors were Olivia Chen and Daniel Wetzel. Soltec shared valuable industry insights.
Other principal authors were: Ashley Acker (gender), Justina Many experts from outside of the IEA provided input and reviewed
Bodláková (job quality, skills), Yannick Monschauer (efficiency), and preliminary drafts of the report. Their comments and suggestions
Jeremy Moorhouse (bioenergy). The report relied on modelling by were of great value. They include:
Marco Baroni. Diane Munro carried editorial responsibility. Marina Harmeet Bawa Hitachi Energy
dos Santos provided essential support.
Nicola Cantore UN Industrial Development Organisation
Valuable comments and feedback were provided by senior Mike Howard Enel Foundation
management and colleagues within the IEA, including Edith Beyer, Philip Jordan BW Research
Stéphanie Bouckaert, Swati Dsouza, Carlos Fernandez Alvarez, Sandeep Pai Center for Strategic and International Studies
Pablo Gonzalez, Timothy Goodson, Nick Johnstone, Tae-Yoon Kim, Stefano Piano OECD
Laura Maiolo, Christophe McGlade, Brian Motherway, Toru Muta,
Debra Rowe US Partnership for Education for Sustainable
Takashi Nomura, Ryszard Pospiech, Matthieu Prin, Hiroyasu
Development
Sakaguchi, Rebecca Schulz, Thomas Spencer and Brent Wanner.
Jay Rutowitz University of Technology Sydney
Thanks also to Jad Mouawad, Head of the Communications and Holly Taylor Australia Energy Efficiency Council
Digital Office (CDO), and to CDO colleagues Astrid Dumond, Tanya Alessandro Terzulli SACE
Dyhin, Grace Gordon, Allison Leacu, Jethro Mullen, Gregory Viscusi Tao Ye China National Renewable Energy Centre
and Therese Walsh.
Ryan Young BW Research
Ying Zhang Chinese Academy of Social Sciences

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World Energy Employment

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World Energy

This mapping can serve as a much-needed foundation for global

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Overview ........................................................................................ 8 Energy end use and efficiency ................................................... 43

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Energy employment as a share of global employment, and by energy sector, 2019

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Energy employment by region and economic sector, 2019

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Understanding the scope and drivers of global energy employment

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Employment in new sectors already rivals levels in conventional energy sectors

Employment in selected energy subsectors, 2019

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Energy employment by economic sector, 2019

Operating existing assets

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Energy employment in fossil fuel and clean energy sectors, 2019-2022

60 75% Fossil fuels

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Earnings (USD per year)

created internal upskilling and reskilling programmes in partnership 60 000

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Female representation in energy is far below economy-wide averages

There are no major differences in the share of female employment

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Focus on seaborne trade of LNG has increased since the Russia

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Power generation employment totalled 11.2 million in 2019, Hydro

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scale solar PV differ. The installation of building-scale solar PV is

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