"From Polluting to Green Jobs: A Seamless Transition in the U.S.?"

What are the implications of the needed climate transition for the potential reallocation of the US labour force? This paper dissects green and polluting jobs in the USA across local labour markets, industries and at the household-level. Bergant and her colleagues find that geography alone is not a major impediment, but green jobs tend to be systematically different than those that are either neutral or in carbon-emitting industries. Transitioning out of pollution-intensive jobs into green jobs may thus pose some challenges. However, there is a wage premium for green-intensive jobs which should encourage such transitions. To gain further insights into the impending green transition, this paper also studies the impact of the Clean Air Act. Bergant and her colleagues find that the imposition of the Act caused workers to shift from pollution-intensive to greener industries, but overall employment was not affected.