Still Skill Shortage In UK’s Wind Industry

Despite the doubling of jobs in just 2 years in the UK wind energy sector, the Wind Industry still faces a skills shortage.

According to a report by RenewableUK, more than a quarter (26%) of employers in the sector said they struggled to fill job vacancies in 2009/10 – up from just 3% the previous year.

The study attributed the shortage to a lack of experience and skills.

Marine energy was the worst affected sector, with 37% of firms reporting hard-to-fill vacancies compared with 26% in offshore wind and 23% in onshore wind.

Those workers who had accepted jobs in these industries were highly skilled, the research found.

“The sector is particularly dependent upon people working in managerial, professional and associated professional occupations that are associated with high-level skills and qualifications – typically degree level and above,” the report said.

Despite the worrying skills gap, full-time employment in the wind energy sector soared by 91% between 2007/8 and 2009/10.

Maria McCaffery MBE, chief executive of RenewableUK, said: “Two conclusions from the results of this study are immediately obvious: this sector has withstood the negative GDP growth of the UK recession and bucked the overall employment trend in a spectacular way by a near doubling of the workforce.”

“Furthermore, the increase in jobs has, to a large extent, mirrored the increase in electricity contributions from renewable sources – chiefly wind – to the grid.

“Latest statistics for Q3 2010 show the total share of renewable electricity at 8.6%, divided in equal parts between wind (at around 4%) and all other sources, compared to 2008, when the total share of electricity from wind was around 2%.”

She said reducing carbon emissions and diversifying energy supplies would bring “a double bonanza of increased green energy yields band economic growth”.

“This study presents a compelling case for increasing our base of installed renewable energy devices,” she said.

“There is a clear link between sector activity and UK employment gains.

“Creating a policy framework that ensures that our wind, wave and tidal resources are fully utilised will create jobs and stimulate economic activity at a time when we need it most.”

Of the 10,800 full-time employees working directly in the wind and marine energy sectors, the majority (56%) are associated with large-scale onshore wind, followed by 29% in offshore wind.

Meanwhile 7-8% of the overall workforce is employed in small-scale wind and around the same proportion in wave and tidal energy.

The study was jointly commissioned by RenewableUK and EU Skills, the Sector Skills Council for the Power Sector, from Warwick University’s Institute for Employment Research (IER) and Cambridge Econometrics.

renewable energy jobs11 Still Skill Shortage In UKs Wind Industry

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