WASHINGTON, DC — As governments worldwide commit to decarbonizing their economies, they face difficulty attracting workers with the necessary skillsets into the green economy. With labor markets already tightened by population aging, immigrants represent an enticing solution as countries and employers race the clock to deliver on their net-zero targets. A Migration Policy Institute (MPI) issue brief out today reviews the state of evidence on labor shortages in the green economy and immigrant employment in green and brown jobs, and outlines key recommendations for adapting labor migration policy to meet the workforce needs of the green transition. Between 2012 and 2022, the number of jobs in the renewable energy sector nearly doubled. That number is only expected to grow as massive investments in green energy are made. By 2030, the Inflation Reduction Act in the United States will have added an estimated 1.5 million jobs, while the European Green Deal has estimates of job creation ranging from 400,000 to 600,000 new positions. One global model has estimated the green worker shortage could reach 7 million people by 2030. In The Role of Immigrant Workers in the Green Transition, MPI analysts Kate Hooper and Lawrence Huang note that immigrants form an important but poorly understood part of the green transition workforce. Immigrants are already working in green jobs, for example accounting for one in four clean energy jobs in Australia in 2021. But data limitations mean there is simply not enough information on how employers use economic migration channels to fill green jobs or where missed opportunities lie, the brief notes. There are also risks to relying on immigration alone to meet short-term labor shortages. The authors argue that any immigration policy updates to attract additional green workers must be paired with other investments, including the reskilling of native-born workers affected by job dislocation, credential recognition for already present immigrants and global talent pool development. “Balancing immigration policy alongside investments in skilling and training has been a perpetual challenge, but the green transition offers a unique opportunity to build inclusive, productive and sustainable economies and labor markets,” Hooper and Huang write. To more fully harness the potential of immigration policy to facilitate green transition ambitions and navigate policy trade-offs, the brief recommends that policymakers: - Engage industry, labor, workers and civil society to better understand the nature of green skills gaps and existing training programs. Greater consultation and better data collection are needed to develop responsive skills development policies and make a case for when and why immigrants should be admitted for green jobs, and how admissions can happen alongside support for local workers.
- Evaluate whether and how existing visa programs can help meet changing green skills needs, with a focus on regular updates of shortage occupation lists, quotas and points tests, drawing from the latest insights on employer needs and economic priorities in the green economy.
- Tackle credential-recognition barriers for already present immigrants who face difficulty getting their academic and professional credentials recognized (a phenomenon known as “brain waste”).
- Work with other countries to grow the green skills talent pool so international recruitment does not exacerbate skills shortages in less-wealthy countries, which have their own green transition needs.
“Addressing green skills shortages to meet net-zero targets will require all hands on deck,” the brief concludes. “Immigration holds great potential for helping to fill some green skills gaps yet is all too often overlooked by stakeholders leading on green transition strategies. Breaking down siloes between immigration, workforce development and other policy portfolios and working more closely with industry and civil society will be critical steps if governments are to deliver on their green transition goals.” This brief is the second in a series of four climate mobility briefs being published over the next few weeks in a research series supported by the Rockefeller Foundation. The first brief, issued last week, focuses on the factors that trigger anxiety or support for climate migrants. The final two publications will address the links between climate migration and development as well as humanitarian protection. To read the green transition brief, visit: www.migrationpolicy.org/research/immigrant-workers-green-transition. Check out MPI’s highly rated podcast, Changing Climate, Changing Migration, for smart discussions on the nexus between climate change and migration. To access all of MPI’s work on climate change, visit: www.migrationpolicy.org/topics/climate-change. | 
