World Energy Employment 2024
About this report
The third edition of the World Energy Employment (WEE) report examines the global energy employment environment as the transition progresses into a period of uncertainty. The report offers a detailed overview of energy employment, including estimates of the workforce's size and distribution across different regions, sectors, and technologies. The dataset provides in-depth information on workers across the entire energy value chain, encompassing fossil fuel supply, bioenergy, nuclear energy, low-emissions hydrogen, power generation, transmission, distribution and storage. It also covers key energy-related end uses, such as vehicle manufacturing and energy efficiency in buildings and industry. The report also assesses how energy labour requirements evolve to 2030 across various IEA scenarios.
This year's report also explores in detail whether emerging markets and developing economies are benefitting from energy job growth as a result of the transition. It also includes a special feature chapter on the fast-growing energy workforce of India.
The 2024 World Energy Employment report revisits many of the critical themes explored in WEE 2023, providing updated insights into the risks of skilled labour shortages and their potential impact on the energy sector and the transition. It continues to examine the key factors driving employment trends such as skills availability, certifications, wages and job vacancy rates, with new analysis on conversion to clean energy occupations. It also marks the second year the IEA carried out a cross-region and sectoral survey of energy companies to understand the challenges they face. The updated findings underscore that labour demand from the energy sector will continue to grow, presenting both opportunities and challenges. With the right policies and collaborative efforts from governments, energy firms, labour representatives, educational institutions, and other stakeholders, there remains a strong potential to manage labour transition risks and ensure a people-centred transition to cleaner energy sources.