Learn by doing, German renewables companies bid to beat labour shortage – Yahoo Finance

*
Some 216,000 jobs unfilled in wind, solar sector
*
Vacancies for skilled workers in German economy rose 30% in 2022 to 1.3 million
*
Experts say 2030 deadline of 80% renewable electricity in jeopardy
*
Migration, learning on the job are possible solutions
By Maria Martinez and Riham Alkousaa
BERLIN, April 20 (Reuters) – German wind power developer SL Naturenergie has been looking for a senior project developer for two years now without success.
The company, in the west German town of Gladbeck, needs to expand its workforce of 50 by a fifth to ensure it can keep up with growing orders, but is struggling to fill all 10 job vacancies.
SL Naturenergie's predicament is common in the renewables sector where companies, from startups to medium sized and blue-chip firms, are competing for a limited pool of labour with appropriate skills.
Germany aims for 80% of its gross electricity consumption to be covered by renewables by 2030, almost double its share in 2021 and one of the most ambitious targets in the world. But meeting that goal will largely depend on whether Europe's biggest economy can adapt its workforce in time.
Currently it faces a shortage of around 216,000 skilled workers needed for the expansion of the solar and wind energy sectors, a study by German organisation KOFA, or the Competence Centre for securing skilled labour, showed.
"We can keep up with orders, but the shortage of workers is a problem because we have to hire basically anyone," Wolfgang Gruendinger, spokesperson for Berlin-based solar company Enpal told Reuters.
Last year, Enpal opened its own centre south of Berlin to train up installers of residential solar panels over two weeks before they join experienced installers on the job.
“You can really learn the job quickly without any previous qualifications,” Gruendinger said, adding that Enpal has trained more than a thousand people who were eventually hired and is booked out for the next six months.
Not all companies can afford to invest in training schemes. Those that do, however, will help ease a wider labour problem across the German economy where a shortage of general skilled workers rose by 30% last year, with 1.3 million jobs unfilled, a study by KOFA published on Monday showed.
Going forward, the labour market faces a transformation. A study by the German Institute for Employment Research (IAB) estimates there will be an additional 544,000 jobs in the German economy by 2025, while 132,000 jobs are expected to disappear as automakers move away from combustion engines to electric vehicles and energy suppliers phase out fossil fuels.
"The ecological transition will create jobs, but it will also generate a structural change in the labour market," said Markus Janser, senior researcher at IAB.
SL Naturenergie took on Jakob Kasperidus, 35, a supermarket branch manager before joining the company, as a junior project developer.
The first few months on the job were not easy, Kasperidus said, but working in tandem with senior project developers for two and half years he has adapted to the job.
"It was an absolute stroke of luck for me," Kasperidus says of the career switch.
PAY PREMIUM
Younger generations show a preference for jobs with a green impact, over occupations in industries that don't seek to improve the environment, Janser said. Furthermore, the shortage of qualified workers means wages are usually higher.
“The idea that green jobs aren’t well paid is a myth,” Janser said. In many jobs in the renewable energy sector, pay is above average, he said, citing a renewable energy wage premium of more than 10% in construction and installation activities, as well as architectural and engineering services.
Tapping new engineering graduates is another way to find staff, but while younger people like the idea of green industries they seem less keen on studying for degrees in mechanical engineering, electrical engineering or renewable energies. Volker Quaschning, a professor of renewable energy systems at HTW university in Berlin, says a third of places on these courses at HTW are unfilled.
"There are relatively good job prospects in all economic sectors, so the younger generation might study more in line with their interests and perhaps avoid technical studies," he said.
Trained craftsmen are also highly sought after. "When you need solar panels on the roof or you need to change the heating system, who does that? It's done by craftsmen, it's not done by academics," said Jan Strohschein, CEO of greenjobs.de, a website advertising jobs in the sector.
The German government is trying to encourage vocational training, a spokesperson from the economics and climate protection ministry said, including a new programme from this month offering 90% subsidies for people training as heat pump specialists.
Last month Germany also unveiled draft reforms on skills training accreditation and promoting immigration in a bid to plug labour shortages in the economy. They include more recognition of foreign training certificates and allowing people to come to Germany to do internships before finding a job.
Lydia Malin, a researcher at the German Economic Institute in Cologne, said the reforms should make it easier for craftsmen to work in Germany although a still lengthy bureaucratic visa process and competition from other European countries for skilled workers remain hurdles.
If wind and photovoltaic projects take longer than planned to complete due to labour shortages, Berlin’s 2030 deadline to be 80% reliant on renewables for power generation will be in jeopardy.
"I can't estimate at all how fast we'll make progress in the next five to 10 years. Personally, I still see a big question mark as to whether we can do it. But I also don't want to say it's impossible," Malin said.
“I haven't given up hope yet."
(Reporting by Maria Martinez and Riham Alkousaa; Editing by Susan Fenton)
CSX hauled in 15% more profit in the first quarter as the railroad's higher rates and fuel surcharges offset its higher costs. CEO Joe Hinrichs said the railroad's service improved in the quarter as CSX cut down on the number of delays many shippers had complained about over the past year. Safety has been a key focus for railroads ever since a fiery Norfolk Southern derailment in Ohio in February.
Underemployment affects all workers — from new graduates to those about to retire.
The Labor Department on Thursday reported that initial claims for unemployment rose in the week ended Saturday to a seasonally adjusted 245,000, up from the previous week’s 240,000. The latest claims figure comes from the so-called reference week for the employer and household surveys that the Labor Department uses to construct its monthly employment figures, so it suggests that the April jobs report won’t show much deterioration in job growth. Indeed, initial claims during March’s reference week at 247,000 were a smidgen higher.
(Bloomberg) — UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has calmed the City of London’s market jitters and reset ties with Europe, but the government’s toxic relationship with the civil servants who keep ministries running may prove more difficult to repair. Most Read from BloombergAirline Blunder Sells $10,000 Asia-US Business Class Tickets for $300SpaceX Says It Blew Up Starship Rocket After Engine MishapElon Musk’s Wealth Plunges $13 Billion as Drama Unfolds Across EmpireUS, Ukraine Allies Consider Near
Chinese internet users berated German automaker BMW on Thursday, accusing it of discrimination at the Shanghai auto show amid claims workers at its Mini booth favoured foreign over domestic visitors during an ice cream giveaway promotion. The topic "BMW Mini" became the second most-searched topic on China's Weibo social media platform, with over 93 million views with users reposting pictures and videos, along with negative comments, of an incident that local media said took place on Wednesday. The controversy comes as BMW and fellow German automakers participate in the Shanghai auto show in full force as they fight to stay on top of consumer trends in a country where domestic rivals have been aggressively taking market share.
The $787.5 million settlement that ended Dominion Voting Systems' defamation lawsuit against Fox Corp also marks the end of a lucrative, two-year legal battle for the sprawling teams of highly-paid lawyers on both sides. Dominion said Fox News broadcast false claims that the company’s voting machines were involved in a conspiracy to rig the 2020 U.S. presidential election, and won one of the biggest settlements paid in a defamation lawsuit. Delaware Superior Court Judge Eric Davis complimented the legal teams in court after Tuesday's settlement, saying he had not seen "as good of lawyering" in 13 years on the bench.
Florida officials ended the state’s contract with a software company that they say erroneously sent an emergency alert test to cellphones in the early hours of Thursday, angering many sleeping residents. The alert was supposed to be a test run for television networks and wasn’t intended to “disturb anyone already sleeping,” the Florida Division of Emergency Management said. The department said it was taking appropriate action to ensure “only true emergencies are sent as alerts in the middle of the night.”
If you've looked at the investment options in your workplace 401(k) retirement plan, chances are you'll see mutual funds that put your money into stocks, bonds or cash and cash equivalents. Those have been the options available ever since 401(k) … Continue reading → The post Here's One Easy Way to Boost Your 401(k) By 8% appeared first on SmartAsset Blog.
Lowering prices to make up sales in volume is a strategy that some analysts believes shifts the competition set for Tesla. And benefits carmakers that choose to remain focused on the luxury market.
Foreign-owned farms are shipping the crop to Saudi Arabia, where it's illegal to grow because it takes too much water.
Are you retired but interested in going back to work? Unless you've developed some hobbies or have significant interests outside your career, retirement can be a lonely place. Suddenly, many of your social contacts are gone. Mental and intellectual pursuits … Continue reading → The post Working in Retirement: Why and How You Might Choose to Stay Busy appeared first on SmartAsset Blog.
(Bloomberg) — Spooked by the threat that China might invade Taiwan, the US wants to cut its dependence on the island’s world-beating microchips. Officials in Taipei believe the Biden administration is going too far.Most Read from BloombergElon Musk’s Wealth Plunges $13 Billion as Drama Unfolds Across EmpireAirline Blunder Sells $10,000 Asia-US Business Class Tickets for $300SpaceX Says It Blew Up Starship Rocket After Engine MishapTesla Increases Price of Model S, X in US After Shares SlumpMeet
Two companies that make tools for manufacturing chips said that they expect sales to China to boom later this year despite U.S. export restrictions on equipment used to make cutting-edge semiconductors. The comments by California-based Lam Research and the Netherlands' ASML Holdings NV are a sign that China may be a bigger customer for the industry than expected this year given its strong demand for less-advanced chips like those used in electric vehicles (EVs). The companies reported quarterly earnings that beat analyst expectations, though Lam's sales were lower than a year ago because of a downturn in the memory market.
Workers are prematurely tapping their retirement savings, a sign that households are coming under increased financial pressure, a troubling development that's likely to get worse if the U.S. economy falls into recession in the coming months. According to the recent … Continue reading → The post Vanguard Says Workers Are Tapping Retirement Money Early, Recommends These Better Options appeared first on SmartAsset Blog.
U.S. businesses in sectors ranging from manufacturing to technology are recalibrating after a period of rapid growth.
Roth conversions are treated like ordinary income and taxpayers have to include the balance on their tax returns. How much you have to pay in taxes depends upon the amount of the conversion plus your adjusted gross income. Here’s what … Continue reading → The post How Much Do You Pay in Roth Conversion Taxes? appeared first on SmartAsset Blog.
Other retailers have also announced layoffs, but most workers in stores and restaurants haven't been affected.
Persistent worries about the US economy falling into recession continued to be challenged by data showing better-than-expected growth across industries.
The debt-limit fight now heating up between House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) and President Joe Biden is reminiscent of battles fought 10 and 12 years ago — only McCarthy may be staking out an even more aggressive position. Back in 2011, when a Democratic president and congressional Republicans were embroiled in a previous showdown over raising the debt ceiling, House Speaker John Boehner set a requirement that any increase in the government’s borrowing limit should be matched or exceeded by t
The latest batch of Gen Z workers want—nay, expect—to earn their first promotion within one year on the job.

source