Canada’s energy efficiency goods and services sector is poised to create 36,000 jobs this year, growing by 8.3 per cent, according to a report released on Monday by ECO Canada.

The report said the sector directly employed about 436,000 permanent workers in 2018 across approximately 51,000 businesses across six industries. The report cited construction, manufacturing, wholesale trade, professional and business services, utilities and other services. Those establishments generated $82.6 billion in revenue in 2018.

“Energy efficiency is key to Canada’s transition to a clean energy future,” said Amarjeet Sohi, Canada’s minister of Natural Resources, in a news release.

Kevin Nilsen

“In addition to helping Canada meet its climate targets, energy efficiency boosts competitiveness, lowers costs for businesses and households and creates good, middle-class jobs for all Canadians.”

The report said the construction industry, by far the largest of the six, generated $37.6 billion in estimated revenue and employed over 287,000 workers across 39,000 establishments in 2018.

“With increasing revenue and job growth across the sector, the demand for qualified energy efficiency workers is high. Over 70 per cent of employers who participated in the study reported experiencing difficulties hiring energy efficiency workers. The hiring challenges are particularly acute in the construction industry, where 43 per cent of the survey respondents stated it is ‘very difficult’ to recruit workers. Lack of qualified workers was generally cited as a key reason for those hiring challenges,” said ECO Canada.

“The labour market shortages can hinder the growth of the energy efficiency sector and stall the fight against climate change. Investments in workforce attraction and development including workforce diversification will be key to addressing the growing skills gap,” said Kevin Nilsen, president and CEO of ECO Canada.

– Mario Toneguzzi

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