Surveys uncover concerns over training for green jobs

Research has revealed that young people desperately want green careers but are struggling to afford relevant university degrees, while those already working in green roles increasingly feel burnt out.

A recent national survey of A-level students commissioned by OVO Energy, shared exclusively with BusinessGreen, found that seven in ten want to work in a job that advances climate action.

However, around half (45 per cent) are put off going to university to gain the relevant degree because of the cost of student debt. The same proportion said they would prefer an apprenticeship to gain the knowledge and skills they require for a green job, but these are in short supply.

‘We must all do more’

In response, OVO Energy is calling on government and other employers in the green economy to develop more apprenticeships and training for young people.

Charlotte Eaton, chief people officer at OVO Energy, told BusinessGreen: “We must all do more to develop training programmes which feel attainable to young people of all backgrounds and incentivise workplaces to take on apprentices. These steps are essential to empowering young people and to close the green skills gap, taking us faster towards our net zero goals.”

Environmental workers burnt out

At the same time, a survey of its members by trade union Prospect has revealed that many people already working in green jobs are suffering from overwork and understaffing.

The survey found that more than two thirds of workers in nature and environmental roles think overall staffing levels in their team are too low, with half reporting unfilled vacancies.

More than a third of respondents said they had experienced a significant increase in workload in the last 12 months. Well over a third cited a reduction in expert staff and tasks being assigned to untrained employees as significant challenges.

Lack of expert roles on the front line

“Insights provided by our expert members are invaluable to understanding what is happening on the front line of the fight to tackle the climate crisis,” said Prospect’s senior deputy general secretary, Sue Ferns. “They are telling us that the paring back of expert roles in their teams is leaving them increasingly burnt out.”

According to campaign group Green New Deal Rising, more than two thirds of UK adults would support the creation of a ‘National Nature Service’ to provide entry-level jobs for those facing employment challenges as a way to solve the green skills gap.