Training Opportunities and Job-Seeker Resources for the Clean Energy Industry

On March 10th, Massachusetts Governor Charlie Baker declared a state of emergency in response to the COVID-19 virus, which was officially defined as a pandemic by the World Health Organization a day later. As many necessary precautions are being taken to “flatten the curve” of cases and save lives, most are experiencing changes in their daily lives including losing their job or fewer hours on their job. The impact of the crisis has been deeply and widely felt across all the sectors, including clean energy. BW Research conservatively estimates that 106,400 clean energy jobs have been lost in the U.S. in March alone, making up a third of total job losses for energy related workers. This does not include furloughed workers.

Acknowledging the current situation and the hardships being faced in the clean energy industry, we would like to emphasize that the Massachusetts Clean Energy Center is available as a resource. Below we have compiled training and other tools for workers in the clean energy industry.

Clean Energy Training opportunities

For those with the ability, there are many training opportunities available for clean energy workers to learn new skills and attain new and certifications:

• MassCEC has developed a Clean Energy Careers Education and Training Directory for Massachusetts, which can be filtered for online availability, location, and specialization.

• The Building Performance Association (BPA) has created an extensive list of trainings focused on clean energy, energy efficiency and green building technologies that can be completed online. It includes both free and premium courses.

• For a broader search, the US Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy has an Education Homepage with a compilation of education and career information.

Resources for Job Seekers

Below are several resources that may be helpful for those seeking employment to keep in mind:

• MassCEC’s Job Seeker page offers a Clean Energy Jobs Board and Clean Energy Resume Board, among other items of interest. On the Clean Energy Jobs Board employers from across the state regularly post non-internship positions. Similarly, on the Clean Energy Resume Board, job seekers can submit their details into the database and have employers reach out for their open positions. The page also includes some non-MassCEC tools such as Northeast Sustainable Energy Association jobs board.
• Current or recently graduated undergraduate and master’s students can apply for our Clean Energy Internship Program, and vocational and technical high school students are eligible for our Vocational Internship Program. For more information on these programs please reach out to jobsboard@masscec.com or internships@masscec.com.

Please remember to keep us in mind as a resource that is available to you through this pandemic. If you have any questions please reach out to info@masscec.com.