The United Kingdom has taken a decisive step in its energy transition with the launch of the Clean Energy Jobs Plan —a roadmap that, for the first time, sets concrete targets for developing green employment and the technical skills needed to sustain the sector’s growth. Backed by record levels of public and private investment in renewable and nuclear energy, the plan foresees a doubling of clean energy-related jobs over the next five years, reaching 860,000 by 2030, with strong demand for 31 priority occupations, including electricians, welders, technicians and plumbers.
Presenting the plan, Energy Secretary Ed Miliband stressed that “communities have long been calling for a new generation of good industrial jobs” and that “the clean energy boom can answer that call.” He added: “Thanks to this government’s commitment to clean power, a generation of young people in our industrial heartlands will have access to well-paid, secure jobs without having to leave their hometowns.”
The strategy sets out a coordinated investment effort between government, industry and education providers to train the next generation of clean energy workers. It will establish five new Technical Excellence Colleges and pilot programmes in Cheshire, Lincolnshire and Pembrokeshire with £2.5 million in funding to expand training and career guidance. Specific initiatives will also target veterans, ex-offenders and unemployed people, recognising that at least 13,700 Britons currently out of work already possess skills relevant to the energy sector.
A key component involves the retraining of oil and gas workers, who will benefit from up to £20 million in joint funding from the UK and Scottish Governments. The plan also extends the Energy Skills Passport scheme, facilitating transitions from offshore oil and gas into new areas such as offshore wind, nuclear and electricity networks.
Work and Pensions Secretary Pat McFadden said the plan “will give workers the skills needed for the switch to clean energy – good for them, good for industry, and good for growth across the nation.”
The document also introduces binding labour standards to ensure that the expansion of renewable energy creates high-quality, secure employment. Employment protections currently enjoyed by offshore oil and gas workers —including the national minimum wage— will be extended to the entire clean energy sector, while a Fair Work Charter will be signed between offshore wind developers and trade unions to guarantee decent pay and robust workplace rights. The Government also acknowledged the need to strengthen union representation —which has fallen from 70 per cent in the 1990s to around 30 per cent today— describing trade unions as “essential to ensuring good pay and fair conditions.”
Since July 2024, the Government estimates that its clean energy mission has mobilised more than £50 billion in private investment, supporting projects such as the Sizewell C nuclear plant, which will create 10,000 construction jobs; the Rolls-Royce Small Modular Reactor programme, expected to support 3,000 jobs; and the Acorn and Viking projects in Scotland and the North East, set to add 35,000 jobs including 1,000 apprenticeships. An additional 4,000 positions will arise from new carbon capture and storage (CCUS) projects in the North West and Teesside.
The salary impact is equally significant: entry-level roles in the clean energy sector pay around 23 per cent more than comparable positions in other industries, while jobs in wind, nuclear and electricity networks offer average annual salaries of £50,000, compared with the UK average of £37,000.
The plan’s publication was welcomed by leading companies —including Centrica, ScottishPower, EDF, Siemens Energy, E.ON, Uniper, National Grid, Renewable UK and Energy UK— which agreed that the strategy provides the regulatory certainty needed to invest in talent, innovation and industrial expansion. “Clean energy is not only about technology but about purpose —renewing the skills and infrastructure that have served us for decades to power the next chapter,” said Chris O’Shea, CEO of Centrica. Keith Anderson, CEO of ScottishPower, added: “With clear direction, we are creating thousands of well-paid jobs in the communities we serve.”
Major trade unions —TUC, Unite, GMB, UNISON, Prospect and Community— also endorsed the plan, highlighting its inclusion of fair-work principles and collective bargaining rights as foundations for a just transition. “This plan puts workers at the heart of our energy system and proves that when government, unions and employees collaborate, the whole country benefits,” said Paul Nowak, General Secretary of the TUC.
The Clean Energy Jobs Plan thus stands as the social pillar of the UK’s energy strategy. Beyond megawatts and technology, it seeks to consolidate a transition that creates genuine opportunities for economic and regional development, particularly in coastal and post-industrial areas. As Miliband concluded, “The clean energy mission is not only about energy security —it’s about good jobs and a nation renewed from the ground up.”
