You’ve heard the terms blue collar jobs and white collar jobs. Now, somebody has coined the phrase “green collar jobs”. (I wish I’d thought of it.) This is in relation to employment on projects that have an energy-saving and/or public safety component. It also includes jobs servicing those projects or making parts for them.

I think this phrasing is really clever in two ways. (1) When selling an idea, it is always most effective to have a “hook” (i.e., a key phrase or slogan). The phrase “green collar jobs” is certainly an easy-to-remember and easy-to-understand hook to gain attention.

And (2), it draws the sting out of some of the punitive aspects of the move to “green”. For example, everybody is in agreement about the need to save the environment and preserve the planet for future generations. However, in the minds of both firms and individuals, there has always been the perception of a considerable cost attached to significant change.

“Green collar jobs” flips the emphasis. It implies that there are opportunities as well as costs in the move to green. New technologies and new processes mean potential in the form of new products and services. Painful as it can sometimes be, we have to embrace the future and the optimism implied in “green collar jobs” provides a nice lift going forward.

Alex Carrick

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