U.S. solar jobs down for second year as Trump tariffs weigh

[Eugene]

Source: Reuters

SUSTAINABLE BUSINESS FEBRUARY 12, 2019 / 5:16 AM / UPDATED AN HOUR AGO

U.S. solar jobs down for second year as Trump tariffs weigh

Nichola Groom
3 MIN READ

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - The number of jobs in the U.S. solar industry dropped by 3.2 percent in 2018, a second year of losses, as the Trump administration’s tariffs on foreign panels and state-level policy changes hit demand for installations, according to an industry report released on Tuesday.

The job losses reflect how changing trade and environmental policies can alter the trajectory of an industry that was among the fastest-growing segments of the U.S. energy industry.

The number of solar energy workers fell by 8,000 to 242,000 in 2018, according to the Solar Jobs Census, released annually by the non-profit research firm The Solar Foundation, following a loss of 10,000 jobs in 2017. But jobs are expected to rise next year, the report said.

In early 2018, President Donald Trump imposed 30 percent tariffs on imported solar panels to boost domestic manufacturing, the opening salvo in what has become a wide-ranging trade war. The move led developers to cancel or freeze billions of dollars of investments in large-installation projects because most of the solar panels used in the United States are made abroad.

On the manufacturing side, there is little evidence so far of a boost. Jobs in the industry’s manufacturing sector - a small slice of the overall industry - fell 8 percent in 2018, according to the report.

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Read more: https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-solar-jobs/u-s-solar-jobs-down-for-second-year-as-trump-tariffs-weigh-idUSKCN1Q1132

[beachbum bob]

1. that was a part of the plan. Slow down solar and wind projects with tarriffs

[duforsure]

2. This should be used by the Democrats

And pledges to reverse this if elected. The Democrats want to make us turn more into renewable energy, and safer and lower costing, while trump and the gop are being paid off to promote other dirtier options now with fossil fuels, coal.