Editor's Note: This story originally appeared on Construction Coverage.
The U.S. is increasingly moving toward electrification — replacing technologies that use fossil fuels with those that use electricity.
Not only are private sector companies like Tesla pushing for the adoption of electric technologies to replace those that use greenhouse gas-emitting energy sources, but the federal government is also taking major steps to finance and expedite the deployment of clean energy technologies through the Inflation Reduction Act.
However, the growth of electrification efforts requires expanding the workforce of electricians, and some industry experts warn that there is currently a shortage of electricians to satisfy demand.
To determine the locations that need more electricians, researchers at Construction Coverage analyzed the latest data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics and the U.S. Census Bureau.
The researchers ranked metropolitan areas according to the local concentration of electricians compared to the national average. Find details of their methodology at the end.
Here are the U.S. metropolitan areas that need more electricians.
15. Fresno, CA
- Concentration of electricians (compared to average): -9%
- Total electricians: 1,690
- Electricians per 1,000 residents: 1.67
- Electricians per 1,000 households: 4.95
14. New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ-PA
- Concentration of electricians (compared to average): -10%
- Total electricians: 38,760
- Electricians per 1,000 residents: 1.96
- Electricians per 1,000 households: 4.67
13. Miami-Fort Lauderdale-Pompano Beach, FL
- Concentration of electricians (compared to average): -10%
- Total electricians: 10,980
- Electricians per 1,000 residents: 1.80
- Electricians per 1,000 households: 4.12
12. San Francisco-Oakland-Berkeley, CA
- Concentration of electricians (compared to average): -10%
- Total electricians: 9,990
- Electricians per 1,000 residents: 2.16
- Electricians per 1,000 households: 5.36
11. San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA
- Concentration of electricians (compared to average): -10%
- Total electricians: 4,700
- Electricians per 1,000 residents: 2.41
- Electricians per 1,000 households: 6.58
10. St. Louis, MO-IL
- Concentration of electricians (compared to average): -11%
- Total electricians: 5,450
- Electricians per 1,000 residents: 1.94
- Electricians per 1,000 households: 4.30
9. Cleveland-Elyria, OH
- Concentration of electricians (compared to average): -14%
- Total electricians: 3,940
- Electricians per 1,000 residents: 1.90
- Electricians per 1,000 households: 4.06
8. Pittsburgh, PA
- Concentration of electricians (compared to average): -15%
- Total electricians: 4,210
- Electricians per 1,000 residents: 1.79
- Electricians per 1,000 households: 3.73
7. Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI
- Concentration of electricians (compared to average): -16%
- Total electricians: 7,380
- Electricians per 1,000 residents: 2.00
- Electricians per 1,000 households: 4.80
6. Memphis, TN-MS-AR
- Concentration of electricians (compared to average): -16%
- Total electricians: 2,430
- Electricians per 1,000 residents: 1.82
- Electricians per 1,000 households: 4.23
5. Tucson, AZ
- Concentration of electricians (compared to average): -18%
- Total electricians: 1,450
- Electricians per 1,000 residents: 1.38
- Electricians per 1,000 households: 3.05
4. Milwaukee-Waukesha, WI
- Concentration of electricians (compared to average): -20%
- Total electricians: 2,990
- Electricians per 1,000 residents: 1.91
- Electricians per 1,000 households: 4.30
3. Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD
- Concentration of electricians (compared to average): -22%
- Total electricians: 10,070
- Electricians per 1,000 residents: 1.62
- Electricians per 1,000 households: 3.87
2. Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA
- Concentration of electricians (compared to average): -27%
- Total electricians: 20,870
- Electricians per 1,000 residents: 1.61
- Electricians per 1,000 households: 4.39
1. Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN-WI
- Concentration of electricians (compared to average): -27%
- Total electricians: 14,960
- Electricians per 1,000 residents: 1.57
- Electricians per 1,000 households: 3.78
Methodology
To determine the locations that need more electricians, researchers at Construction Coverage analyzed employment data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics’ 2022 Occupational Employment Survey and population and housing unit data from the U.S. Census Bureau’s 2021 American Community Survey and 2021 Housing Unit Estimates.
All of these data sets are the latest available. The researchers ranked metropolitan areas according to the local concentration of electricians compared with the national average. In the event of a tie, the metro with the smaller number of total electricians was ranked higher.
Researchers also calculated the number of electricians per 1,000 residents and the number of electricians per 1,000 households.
To improve relevance, only metropolitan areas with at least 100,000 people were included in the analysis.
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