Communication: Green employment initiative: tapping into the job creation potential of the green economy

The Europe 2020 Strategy recognises the central role of the transition towards a green, low carbon and resource efficient economy in achieving smart, sustainable and inclusive growth. The inefficient use of resources, the unsustainable pressure on the environment, and climate change, as well as social exclusion and inequalities pose challenges to long-term economic growth and an alternative growth model going "beyond GDP" has been on the agenda for many years.

A model for green growth – leading to low carbon, climate resilient and resource efficient economy - is used to depict a structural economic change which is mainly driven by scarcity of resources, technological change and innovation, new markets, and changes in industrial and consumer demand patterns. Resources, raw material and energy prices is already impacting the cost structure of companies, as global demand for those resources will continue to rise due to increasing consumption in emerging economies. Today’s linear model - where one “takes-makes-consumes and disposes” – will progressively shift towards a circular model where one gets more value added and more benefit from each ton of material, each joule of energy and each hectare of land, by saving, re-using and recycling materials, and where resource productivity will define future competitiveness.

Green growth is both a challenge and an opportunity for the labour market and skills which, in turn, are key factors for enabling green growth. The transition will bring about fundamental transformations across the entire economy and across a wide range of sectors: additional employment will be created, some jobs will be replaced and others redefined. In this context, better targeting and coordination of labour market measures and tools are essential to create the necessary conditions to support green employment, bridge skill gaps and labour shortages, and anticipate change in human capital needs.

This Communication aims at defining strategic framework conditions to allow labour market and skills policies to play an active role in supporting employment and job creation in the green economy. It puts forward targeted policy responses and tools to ensure that the employment and environmental agendas converge and to contribute to reaching the Europe 2020 objectives.

See also:
- Communication from the Commission to the European Parliament, the Council, the European Economic and Social Committee and the Committee of the Regions - Green Action Plan for SMEs: Enabling SMEs to turn environmental challenges into business opportunities

ESO: Background information: Employment: Commission outlines measures to maximise job opportunities in the green economy http://www.europeansources.info/record/press-release-employment-commission-outlines-measures-to-maximise-job-opportunities-in-the-green-economy/

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