Employment across the global energy sector continued to expand in 2024, reaching approximately 76 million jobs, according to the World Energy Employment 2025 report published by the International Energy Agency IEA. This represents an increase of more than five million jobs since 2019 with growth driven primarily by the electricity sector.
The IEA finds that electricity has overtaken fuel supply to become the largest source of employment growth across the global energy system. Jobs linked to power generation, transmission, distribution and storage now account for a greater share of global energy employment growth than oil, gas or coal supply.
Renewable energy technologies underpin much of this increase. Solar photovoltaic is identified as the single largest contributor to power sector job growth globally, accounting for roughly half of all new electricity jobs added since 2019. Wind power, grid expansion and electricity storage have also contributed to rising labour demand alongside continued employment in fossil fuel-based electricity generation.
