COVID-19 Ends Five Years of Solar Job Growth

The Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA) recently released a new analysis showing how the coronavirus pandemic has erased five years of job growth in the solar industry. The analysis shows that the U.S. solar industry will employ 114,000 fewer workers by June 2020, versus the 302,000 workers expected to be employed in that time period. With a workforce of 188,000 people, this job loss takes the industry back to 2014 levels. While the U.S. government reported another 3 million unemployment claims, the solar industry is losing jobs at a faster rate than the overall U.S. economy, says the report.

This analysis shows a 38% drop in solar jobs compared to previous estimates for June, which coincides with a 37% decrease in expected Q2 solar installations from pre-COVID forecasts. The U.S. is only on track to install 3 gigawatts (GW) of new capacity in Q2 2020. 

All 50 states show solar job losses, with 36 states suffering job losses above 30%. Seven states and Washington, DC have seen solar job losses exceed 60%, including solar hot spots like New York and New Jersey. 

On May 13, a BW Research Partnership report based on the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) data showed 95,600 renewable energy jobs and a total of 594,300 clean energy jobs had been lost in March and April. SEIA's analysis shows the vast majority of those job losses came from the solar energy industry. 

The 37% decrease in new installed solar capacity is equivalent to the electricity needed to power 288,000 homes and $3.2 billion in economic investment. 

For more information from this analysis, read the original release from SEIA.