Clean Jobs Midwest Report

People working in clean energy have jobs in several industries. They may work in energy efficiency — manufacturing energy efficient windows and doors, or in construction working to retrofit buildings and save people money with efficient lighting or HVAC systems.

Clean energy jobs also include workers who are employed in industries that generate power from wind, solar, bioenergy, geothermal and low-impact hydro technologies.

Minnesotans who build and develop hybrid and plug-in electric vehicles, as well as those who develop clean fuels like biodiesel and non-corn ethanol from grasses or agricultural waste are also part of the clean energy sector.

In Minnesota, a growing sector of clean energy jobs are focused on advanced grid technologies that store energy on the grid and manage the distribution of energy to customers. People working in this sector are helping to modernize our electric grid and build a more efficient and resilient electricity system.

Compared to 2020 statewide workforce demographics, Minnesota’s clean energy industry was slightly more racially and ethnically diverse. However, the industry lagged Minnesota’s overall workforce in a few demographic areas. In particular, females made up 48 percent of Minnesota’s overall workforce, but only 27.4 percent of the state’s clean energy workforce.

The Clean Jobs Midwest report does not provide wage data or race and gender breakdowns for manager-level and executive positions, though that is important data for analyzing diversity, equity and inclusion.

Currently, 11.2 percent of clean energy jobs are filled by veterans– more than twice the representation of veterans in the state’s overall workforce at 5 percent. The large ratio of veterans transitioning to clean energy jobs is the result of the U.S. Department of Defense’s long-standing commitment to investing in renewable energy and energy efficiency training programs that prepare veterans for private-sector employment in industries like solar.