The Solar Industry is one of the fastest growing industries in America, creating jobs at a fantastic rate. In fact, 1 of 50 new jobs in America are in the solar industry and that number continues to rise.
Over the next ten years, the US Department of Labor projects that the total number of solar panel installers will more than double, the highest growth rate of any job in the country.
According to the US Energy Employment Report for 2017, 374,000 people are employed in whole or in part by the solar industry at the beginning of the year. To put those 374,000 current solar jobs in America in perspective, the coal industry employs a little over 50,000 people nationwide and is shrinking significantly each year. In fact, right now there are only six American companies that employ more people than the solar industry does - Wal-Mart, Amazon, Kroger, IBM, The Home Depot, and McDonald's.
Solar jobs are also quite varied, too. In addition to the people that you see such as a sales representative, a roofing expert and installer, and an electrician, there are many other jobs in the solar industry one may not think about. There are engineers that are working on improving the solar panels, inverters, and batteries to better capture sunlight and covert it to power you can use. You have lots of office personelle supporting and scheduling solar sales sessions. There are even blog-wring superheroes who may or may not fight crime in their spare time.
The future of solar looks even brighter. The International Energy Agency’s world forecast has solar energy growing at an annual rate faster than coal, natural gas, and nuclear COMBINED over the next 20 years. The IEA predicts solar will have an average annual growth rate between now and 2040 of about double the growth rate of 2010-2016.
Growth at Sunpro
The future is bright for solar and that means more jobs that are fit for people from a wide array of backgrounds. It also means that more people will be able to support their family doing something meaningful – providing clean energy, reducing greenhouse gasses and dependence on non-renewable resources. Solar might be the most perfect industry to work, which is a very good thing since it is so rapidly growing. It might be the right time to look into a career where the future is bright as you harness the light.
Interested in some of our jobs? Check out our careers page!
