The details: The T&D and storage sectors saw a 2% employment boost between 2024-2025—this increase “significantly outpaced the national average,” according to the DOE’s 2026 United States Energy & Employment Report (USEER). The drivers? Utility investment and rising power demand. Nearly half of this growth occurred in natural gas T&D.
On the generation side: The electric generation sector lost around 15K workers (a 2% decrease) over the same period. Here, the specific trends reflect White House priorities: The nuclear and coal workforces grew by 4% and 5%, while solar and wind fell by 3% and 2%.
The money: Annual median salaries in TDS and electric power generation were 28% and 37% higher than the 2025 US median salary ($51K).
The gaps: The report pointed to “particularly high shortages in electrically skilled occupations” amid the data center boom, along with natural gas T&D, battery storage, and power plant construction and repair. But…around 70% of employers in the TDS and electric power generation sectors said they had trouble hiring—especially for management positions.
Mon, Sep 7
Molly Glick
Energy Central Team
NEWS: We dug through the DOE’s annual energy workforce report (so that you don’t have to). Here’s the highlights:
2
1 reply