Clean energy is a major job creator in the U.S., employing 3.2 million Americans and accounting for more than 40 percent of all energy jobs in the country. In 2021, energy sector jobs grew at a much faster pace (4 percent) than overall U.S. employment (2.8 percent). These jobs are benefiting both red and blue states: California, Texas and New York currently employ the most clean energy workers.

Clean energy jobs are set to climb even more in coming years thanks to the massive investments in the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) and bipartisan Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) that will pour billions of dollars into clean energy technologies, invest in grid updates and electric vehicles, as well as make the U.S. more competitive in global markets. Sectors across the U.S. economy will see job growth from these climate-smart investments, most notably in the buildings and electricity sectors from energy efficiency, constructing new infrastructure for zero-emissions electricity generation, grid modernization and electrification.

In fact, new analysis from World Resources Institute finds that the U.S. can create nearly 1 million more net jobs by 2035 from federal climate measures included in the IRA and IIJA compared to business-as-usual. But the full employment impact can be significantly larger when you factor in provisions related to onshoring manufacturing of clean energy technologies, which could create up to 3.1 million additional net jobs during the same period.