Solar panels ‘could create 22,500 jobs’
A trade union says 22,500 new jobs will be created over 10 years across the country if the Rudd government encourages the installation of rooftop solar panels.
The Electrical Trades Union (ETU) of Victoria launched its Job Creation report into the solar panel industry on Wednesday with the support of Greens leader Bob Brown.
‘The report shows thousands of new jobs would be created by the introduction of this scheme – jobs for installers, electricians, jobs in retail and marketing,’ Senator Brown said.
‘The employment benefits would be spread around the country.’
Senator Brown said he would be taking the report to the Senate in support of the Greens Renewable Energy Amendment Bill introduced last November by Senator Christine Milne.
He said the government and the coalition had spoken in favour of Senator Milne’s bill but the government had not taken any action to bring a national focus to the issue.
ETU state secretary Dean Mighell said the only way to create jobs in the industry was to pay generators for the electricity they produced from their panels.
He said if the scheme was applied to commercial sites, such as shopping centres and supermarkets, there was potential for the solar manufacturing industry to be revived in Australia.
