The UK needs to ramp up green skills training or risks stalling the green transition, new research supported by Iberdrola has found.
According to Green Skills Outlook, produced by Economist Impact for ScottishPower’s parent company, a majority (71%) of business leaders agree green skills will be the most important driver, yet just 51% are implementing or planning to implement green skills programmes for their workforce.
Meanwhile, almost two thirds (63%) think that the green transition will create more jobs than it eliminates, with three quarters (74%) saying that the jobs it creates will be higher quality for workers.
Green Skills Outlook explores the impact of the green transition in nine labour markets globally, including the UK.
It looks at four sectors of the economy that will play a central role in the green transition: IT and Technology, Construction and Infrastructure, Transport and Logistics and Energy and Utilities.
The Outlook finds that a large proportion of the UK workforce face missing out on the skills necessary for a greener economy, which risks obstructing the progress of the green transition.
UK business leaders are generally optimistic about the green transition, with over two thirds (68%) confident that it presents more opportunities than challenges.
To date the bulk of green roles have been in the energy industry, but a low carbon future will require all workers to acquire green skills, ranging from non-vocational, non-technical soft skills to more technical, role-specific skills.
For example, over 30% of respondents in the energy sector identified smart grid implementation as one of the most important green skills to enable their organisation’s green transition,
The top three policies business leaders think should be prioritised to ensure the supply of green skills in the labour market are support for the establishment of green skills courses at educational institutions (48%), support for businesses’ investment in up-skilling and re-skilling programmes (46%) and adapting existing work and training programmes for the unemployed to increase the emphasis on and support for green skills (41%).
In the longer term, Iberdrola is calling for an environment that incentivises the greening of the economy more broadly, whether through stricter standards, putting a price on emissions, or removing subsidies for polluting industries, such as fossil fuels.
Keith Anderson (pictured), CEO of ScottishPower, said: “Businesses looking to future proof their workforce plans should consider investing in those skills ahead of need to ensure they stay ahead of the game.
“The great news for job hunters is that there is a bright future if you have a green skillset.
“As the business leaders we spoke to for our research agreed, the private sector will undoubtably drive the skills agenda but there’s is a debate to be had with policymakers as to how we coordinate and innovate so the UK can take advantage of everything the green transition has to offer.”