Europe’s clean-tech industry: Value creation, employment and demand for skilled workers

The study commissioned by the European Environment Agency shows that the clean-tech industry is growing rapidly – yet a skilled workforce is becoming a crucial factor in achieving the EU’s net-zero targets.

Clean-tech is driving employment growth, but installation capacity is lacking

These are the key findings:

• Wind energy was the largest employer in 2023, with around 273,500 direct jobs.
• Solar energy/photovoltaics follows with 227,300 employees.
• Installation remains the most labour-intensive and, at the same time, the area most critical in terms of capacity across all four technologies.
• In the solar and heat pump sectors, a lack of installation capacity is holding back market growth.
• For heat pumps, a significant shortage of qualified installers is expected by 2030 – despite growing demand.
• Europe’s dependence on intermediate goods, for example in the solar sector, shifts employment heavily towards downstream activities such as construction, installation and operation.

Regional differences and demographic challenges

Employment in net-zero technologies varies greatly between EU Member States, but demographic hurdles are evident everywhere:

• Germany is a key employment hub, particularly for wind and solar.
• Southern and Eastern European countries such as Portugal, Spain, Poland, Lithuania, Romania and Hungary are experiencing particularly strong growth.
• In some countries – such as Italy – declining deployment trends are already having a negative impact on labour demand.
• Women are significantly under-represented in all four sectors.
• Fewer than ten percent of employees are under 25 years of age.
• Around one-fifth are over 55 – meaning that the demand for skilled workers is further exacerbated by demographic change.

The analysis shows that new jobs do not automatically guarantee socially sustainable working conditions. Many roles – particularly in construction and installation – have so far offered little job security, lower wages and limited opportunities for further training.

Inclusive working conditions, high quality standards and the expansion of initial and further training are essential for a successful transformation.

Our approach

The aim of the project was to identify key factors influencing the competitive and future-oriented development of industry and the labour market within the context of the European net-zero strategy.

The study therefore combines quantitative and qualitative analytical approaches to comprehensively examine the development of the European clean-tech industry.

• The Prognos envigos model was used to quantitatively calculate the employment effects of renewable energies.
• Using the skilled worker model, the project team then analysed how these effects impact skills profiles and labour market bottlenecks.
• Subsequently, policy frameworks such as the Net Zero Industry Act, REPowerEU and the Clean Industrial Deal were examined.
• Case studies shed light on additional aspects such as job quality, regional characteristics and the challenges of recruiting skilled workers.

Links and downloads

The study (PDF)

Further information on the EEA website

Project team: Markus Hoch, Philipp Kreuzer, Jannis Lambert, Robert Norpoth, Richard Simpson

Last updated: 09.09.2026