Businesses working in the Scottish renewable energy sector are anticipating a sixth of their workforce will be lost within the next 12 months, a new industry survey has shown. Scottish Renewables polled its members on employment levels and confidence over the next year, with respondents predicting an average decrease in full-time equivalent posts in Scotland of 16.9%.
Jenny Hogan, Director of Policy at Scottish Renewables, said: “These results show that changes to and closures of support schemes are having an impact on our members and on the numbers of employees within their businesses."
Scottish Renewables’ Employment Trends and Business Confidence survey also asked respondents how they felt about the future of the renewables sector more generally over the coming 12 months. More than four in ten (41%) said they felt either quite or very negative, while the same number said they felt ‘neutral’ about the coming year. Surprisingly, more respondents felt positive about the future of their own businesses over the next 12 months than felt negatively. Some 47% said they felt either very positive or quite positive, while 32% felt either very negative or quite negative. A fifth (20%) said they felt neutral.
