POWER September 2017 - 10

THE BIG PICTURE: Economic and
Workforce Contributions
The Edison Electric Institute, an industry trade group that represents all U.S. investor-owned power companies, the
American Public Power Association, an association for public power entities, and the National Rural Electric Cooperative
Association, which represents the bulk of U.S. not-for-profit consumer-owned electric cooperatives, this August released a
report highlighting the economic and workforce contributions of the U.S. power industry. Here are its most significant
findings. Data used to conduct modeling came from U.S. government sources and the Center for Energy Workforce Development.
Source: Powering America: The Economic and Workforce Contributions of the U.S. Electric Power Industry (August 2017)
-Copy and artwork by Sonal Patel, a POWER associate editor
AN ECONOMIC POWERHOUSE
* The power sector is the most capital-intensive industry in the U.S. In 2016, the industry's capital investments exceeded
$135 billion-twice what it was a decade ago.
* The industry invests more than $100 billion annually in the U.S. economy. In 2014, the power sector contributed
$274 billion to U.S. gross domestic product (GDP)-1.6% of the nation's total economic output. In total, the industry's
economic impact is $880 billion annually, which is about 5% of the nation's total GDP.
* Meanwhile, the electric power industry has more than $1 trillion in physical assets and equipment across the country,
including power plants, substations, towers, transmission and distribution lines, smart meters, and more.
THE U.S. POWER SECTOR SUPPORTS MORE THAN
7 MILLION U.S. JOBS
2,662,000
DIRECTLY PROVIDED
CONTRACTORS &
SUPPLY CHAIN
INVESTMENT INDUCED BY
POWER
INDUSTRY
EMPLOYEES
4,418,000
INDUCED*
491,000 756,000 1,410,000 678,000 959,000 445,000 2,336,000
ELECTRIC
POWER
INDUSTRY
EMPLOYEES
INDUCED BY
CONTRACTORS &
SUPPLY CHAIN
INDUCED
PUBLIC SECTOR
ECONOMY-WIDE
RIPPLE EFFECT
*Induced jobs are spread throughout the economy and include many positions that are the result of
paycheck spending by workers and government spending to support the communities around those
workers.
EMPLOYMENT BY OWNERSHIP
About 491,000 workers are
employed by investor-owned
electric companies, public
power utilities, electric
cooperatives, and independent
power producers. The
power industry's contractors
and supply chain provide
756,000 jobs.
JOBS AND PAY
Engineers, lineworkers, plant and field operators, and technicians make up 44% of total energy industry employees.
Engineers and technicians have the highest percentage of workers over 53 years of age, and these job categories have the
potential for significant retirements in coming years. On average, employees work in the industry for more than 15 years.
Engineering Jobs and Median Hourly Wages
Power Plant and Field Operator Jobs and Median Hourly Wages
More than 35,000 engineers work for electric and natural gas distribution
companies. Engineering jobs are projected to grow by 3.6% between 2014
and 2024.
Electrical Engineers
$44
19K
Civil Engineers
$44
1.8K
Nuclear Engineers
$50
7K
Mechanical Engineers
$43
1.5K
4.5K
Architectural and
Engineering Managers
$63
Other Engineers
$43
1.7K
AN AGING WORKFORCE
The power sector workforce is aging. Employees older than
45 represent 58% of the power workforce compared to 45%
nationally. However, data from 2015 showed retirement
forecasts are trending downward as younger workers enter
the workforce and training campaigns pay off. The Troops to
Energy Jobs program, for example, has ramped up military
veteran hiring, which accounted for more than 10% of new
hires in the power sector at the end of 2014.
10
10%
15%
20%
25%
30%
5%
<24
25-34
35-44
National workforce
www.powermag.com
45-54
Age group
Electric power industry
POWER | September 2017
55-64
>65
Power Plant Operators
$35
31K
Natural Gas Plant
Operators
$33
8K
Nuclear Reactor
Operators
$43
6K
About 45,000 power plant and field operators run the nation's
power plants and compressor stations.
Electric cooperatives
14%
Public power
utilities
19%
67%
Investor-owned power
companies

http://www.powermag.com

POWER September 2017

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