According to the 2024 United States Energy and Employment Report,24 the clean energy sector created 149,000 new jobs in the U.S. in 2023, reflecting a three percent increase compared to a two percent growth for the overall economy. Job growth in Washington State is projected to rise by 12.8 percent through 2032,25 indicating a promising future for the clean energy sector and the potential for significant economic growth.
In preparing for economic growth, King County recognizes the unique opportunity to collaborate with growing local industries over the next five years. King County’s goal centers on ensuring that residents from frontline communities impacted by climate change have access to economic opportunities through living-wage careers.
Specifically, King County has the opportunity and responsibility to leverage its platform and initiatives to accelerate clean energy deployment. This includes advancing skills training opportunities, business technical assistance, and workforce partnerships to help close the skills gap and prepare the local workforce for the clean energy transition as it unfolds.
What's at stake
Many local communities are missing out on the economic opportunities the clean energy transition presents. According to a Seattle-King County Workforce Development Council report, 28 percent of working-age households in Washington live below the self-sufficiency standard,26 a measure of income adequacy based on the real cost of all basic needs, including taxes and savings for working families. If King County does not take action, low-income communities risk missing out on the economic benefits of the clean energy transition, similar to how many residents were left behind27 during the tech boom in Seattle.
It is crucial to connect County residents to good-paying career opportunities. Failing to do so may reinforce the harmful notion that one must choose between advancing the clean energy transition and maintaining a strong economy. Missing this opportunity will make achieving the County’s climate goals much harder.
A better outcome
King County can be a region where the link between climate action and economic opportunity is clear and undeniable. In this vision, local businesses recognize the financial benefits of climate solutions, thanks to the incentives and resources that King County has made available to them. Additionally, this can be a community where cross-sector partnerships, programs, and outreach in frontline communities showcase a variety of career pathways for residents and young people interested in pursuing careers in the clean energy sector.
What we've done to get here
- Designed and launched a clean-energy-focused workforce development and business engagement program, King County Jumpstart to connect youth 18–24 with skills training and paid work-based learning with local clean energy contractors. 86 percent of youth served by JumpStart identify as Black or Latino, and 83 percent of participants successfully complete paid work-based learning with an employer.
- Developed the first countywide Green Jobs Strategy highlighted by third parties as a high-quality community-informed plan.28
- Completed an industry sector analysis through 2031 of local high-growth sectors such as construction, manufacturing, transportation, and professional services/tech.
- Led the creation of the Coalition for Climate Careers, a public-private partnership and regional collaboration focused on promoting green job growth and quality skills training.
- Collaborated with County project managers and local contractors to require paid work-based learning for youth for County programs like Energize and Equitable Wastewater Futures, developing a model for other capital projects across the County.
- Revised King County’s green building scorecard to allow for more opportunities for project managers to advance economic opportunity through workforce development.
- Facilitated dozens of community events and job fairs, engaging hundreds in career exposure related to the green economy, including the Green Jobs Green Futures Summit.
24 U.S. Department of Energy, “United States Energy & Employment Report,” 2024.
25 Washington Roundtable, “Report: Skill Up for Our Future,” 2024.
27 The Seattle Times, “Central District’s Shrinking Black Community Wonders What’s Next,” 2020.
28 Brookings, “Why Green Jobs Plans Matter and Where U.S. Cities Stand in Implementing Them,” 2023.