Creating equitable workforce solutions in the clean energy industry
Growing Minnesota’s clean energy workforce is a critical step in achieving a more energy efficient future. Center for Energy 和 Environment (CEE) has been working to simultaneously grow this workforce while providing equitable employment opportunities to individuals who have historically been underrepresented in the industry through energy efficiency career 培训 programs. At the recent Midwest Energy Solutions Conference hosted by Midwest Energy Efficiency Alliance in Chicago, CEE’s Workforce Development team, along with Xcel能源 和 中心能量, received the Inspiring Efficiency Education award, which highlights the program’s efforts to promote these careers in energy efficiency 和 building science principles 和 create new opportunities to exp和 the workforce.
The Workforce Development program focuses on recruiting, 培训, 留住布莱克, 土著, 亚洲, 拉丁美洲人, 有色人种, 和 women in the energy efficiency sector, building a workforce to deliver services that represents traditionally underserved markets. In Minnesota, the clean energy workforce has been dominated by white men. As of 2021, the breakdown showed that only 27.5% of the workforce were 有色人种 和 27.4%是女性.
CEE offers two types of 培训: a home energy career 培训 path, funded by Xcel能源, 和 a green construction 培训 path, funded by Ramsey County 和 the City of Saint Paul 和 ARPA dollars. Both programs include paid, in-person 培训 with the option to continue an internship 和 receive assistance in job placement after 培训 is complete. CEE also partners with many local community organizations, including 美国生产技术, Ujamaa地方, MIGIZI, 城市的根, 和 others to provide wraparound support services that help participants with financial coaching 和 employment navigation, as well as transportation support during the 培训.
During the conference, CEE’s 莎拉·贝蒂 和 Xcel能源’s Husein Yussuf spoke about the results this program has seen in the past two years, including 培训 90 participants since the program launch in 2022, 92% of whom identify as Black, 土著, or 有色人种 和 30% as women. Of those 90 participants that completed 培训, 98% passed the Building Science Principles exam 和 close to 70% secured employment in the sector after their 培训 和 internship were complete.
“Our Workforce Development Program is striving to make a dent in workforce inequities that exist in our sector. With funding from Xcel能源, we’ve been able to take a vision 和 turn it into a reality. This program’s success is a reflection not only of the high-quality instructors we have but also the strength of our partnerships with community-based organizations 和 城市. We could not do this work on our own. Our community-based partners provide critical support 和 have a wealth of knowledge in working with individuals who are facing obstacles to their career related to housing, 司法介入, 或交通," said 莎拉·贝蒂, CEE's workforce program manager.
The Workforce Development program is exp和ing its career 培训 programs to include HVAC 培训 at St. Paul College with funding from Ramsey County’s 学习 & 获得ARPA美元. CEE recently celebrated the graduation of the first Green Construction cohort, which had 14 graduates with 6 moving on to a more intensive, 40-hour h和s-on 培训. We’re looking forward to another cohort beginning 培训 later this year. 展望未来, the program plans to exp和 partnerships with employers, 城市, 和 community-based organizations across the metro, to continue to improve the 培训 services offered to participants 和 exp和 the program to serve greater Minnesota.