10 Best U.S. States for Solar, Wind, Natural Gas Jobs in 2024

1/23/2024

Roughly 560,000 utility industry professionals work tirelessly to make sure people have the electricity, heat, water and telecommunications capability necessary to live their everyday lives. If you’ve ever considered a career as one of these essential workers, now is a great time to take a closer look.

From one segment of the utility industry to the other, employment opportunities and wages are both on the climb. As a whole, average industry hourly wages increased 20% from 2019 to 2023 alone.

Industrial scale photovoltaic solar field installation in Rosamond, Kern County, California. The opportunities are especially strong within some of the “alternative power” sectors of the utility industry. Let’s take a look at a few of those sectors to see where the best employment opportunities are.

Solar

Solar Photovoltaic Installers assemble, install and maintain rooftop systems and other systems that convert sunlight into energy. Roughly 29,400 people were employed in this field in 2022. Job prospects are quite strong, as 22% job growth is expected through 2032.

Employment opportunities

The top 10 states employing the most solar photovoltaic installers are:

1. California

2. Texas

3. New Jersey

4. Florida

5. Massachusetts

6. Arizona

7. Colorado

8. Maryland

9. North Carolina

10. Utah

Wages and compensation

As an industry average, solar installers earn roughly $21.75 an hour. The best earnings potential is within the heavy civil sector in California where the average wage is $35 an hour. Along with heavy civil, solar installers also work in utility system construction, as well as other fields such as electrical and roofing. All factors considered, the following states are paying the best wages for people to install solar systems in a variety of applications:

1. California

2. Michigan

3. Massachusetts

4. New Jersey

5. Hawaii

6. Utah

7. Oregon

8. Vermont

9. Maryland

10. North Carolina

Wind

Wind Turbine Service Technicians inspect, diagnose, adjust and repair wind turbines. They also provide routine maintenance on electrical, mechanical and hydraulic systems. Roughly 9,830 wind turbine service technicians are employed across the country.

Employment opportunities

Pipeline under construction The top 10 states employing the most wind turbine service technicians are:

1. Texas

2. California

3. Kansas

4. Oklahoma

5. Iowa

6. Minnesota

7. Pennsylvania

8. New York

9. North Dakota

10. New Mexico

Wages and compensation

The average wage of a wind turbine service technician is nearly $29 per hour. Pennsylvania leads the way with an average of $47.64 within the electric power generation sector. Here’s a look at the top 10 states for wind turbine service technician wages:

1. Pennsylvania

2. North Dakota

3. Minnesota

4. New York

5. South Dakota

6. Iowa

7. Kansas

8. California

9. Washington

10. Wyoming

Natural gas

More than 31,000 people are employed in a variety of occupations within the Natural Gas Pipeline industry.

Employment opportunities

The top 10 states offering the most employment opportunities are:

1. California

2. Texas

3. Ohio

4. New Jersey

5. Illinois

6. New York

7. Pennsylvania

8. Massachusetts

9. Missouri

10. Michigan

Wages and compensation

The average wage for all occupations within the Natural Gas Pipeline industry is $40 an hour. Construction managers earn an average of $112 per hour. Facilities managers earn nearly $105. Transportation, storage and distribution managers make nearly $84 per hour. Those working in construction-related occupations average roughly $40 an hour.

The highest-paying states for people working various jobs within the natural gas pipeline industry are:

1. California

2. Georgia

3. Connecticut

4. Colorado

5. Alaska

6. New York

7. Oregon

8. Nebraska

9. Washington

10. New Jersey

In conclusion

Choosing the best states to seek employment as a solar, wind or natural gas professional largely depends on where you’d like to live and work. Yes, certain states offer more employment opportunities and higher wages. But the industry as a whole is growing, is in urgent need of workers, and is paying higher wages than it has ever paid before. Now is a great time to build a great career as an alternative power utility worker—whichever state you choose.

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