The Department of Labor’s (DOL) Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) announced Nov. 17 it plans to start collecting industry and occupational data on environmentally friendly “green jobs” next year, pending congressional approval of budget appropriations.
BLS plans to begin collecting data on green jobs in 2010 and publish the data in 2011. However, that timetable is dependent on when the agency receives the necessary appropriations from Congress, which has not yet approved the DOL’s budget for those fiscal years.
The BLS hopes to be able to provide information on the number of green jobs that exist and trends of expansion and decline over time; the industrial, occupational, and geographic distribution of these jobs; and information on wages and what education is required.
A study group on green jobs was started under the support of the Workforce Information Council, which is a federal-state partnership made up of representatives of BLS, the DOL’s Employment and Training Administration and state labor officials. BLS plans to conduct an industry survey, an occupational survey and then develop career information materials.
For more information on the green jobs study group, visit
www.workforceinfocouncil.org/GreenJobs.asp For more information about green building, visit
www.greenconstructionatwork.com.