Young people urged to think about 'green' jobs across the North West to boost maritime sector
The North West's maritime sector is set to recruit a 7,000 strong 'green team' by 2030, targeted at young people celebrating their exam results in late August.
This is part of a national push that will see the industry aim to fill 64,000 new roles in total across the UK. Maritime UK is appealing to students during exam results season to consider careers dedicated to meeting Net Zero.
New skilled jobs are expected across country and particularly in coastal communities - for example Merseyside - with remuneration 30% higher than the UK benchmark. Young technology, engineering, and science enthusiasts are being called upon, as well as problem-solving entrepreneurs and creative thinkers from the arts and humanities, to consider a career where they will steer Britain's maritime fleet in a green direction. Sarah Kenny OBE, chair of Maritime UK, said: "Maritime is looking for an all-star green team to do the most important job in the history of our industry: protect our planet. "Today you may be celebrating your exam results, tomorrow you could be building the new Teslas of the seas or safeguarding the rich marine life of our oceans. "Regardless of what you studied or where you're from, if you want to make your difference, we'd urge you to consider joining us on our voyage to Net Zero." The UK's maritime sector has committed to Net Zero by 2050 and is a global leader in decarbonisation."
In the past 12 months alone, Belfast-based Artemis Technologies launched the world's first electric workboat that can fly over the water using foiler technology, and the government has backed a pipeline of projects through its Clean Maritime Demonstration Competition that includes building the world's first green submarine. There are wide and varying career entry routes, with Science, Technology, Engineering, the Arts and Mathematics (STEAM) skills offering the best chance to join maritime. While technical skills are important, the 'arts' in STEAM is also key, with possibilities for creative thinkers to thrive in an industry that's looking for innovative decarbonisation solutions. Examples of existing green jobs within the industry range from deck officers on hybrid or green vessels, sustainability advisors at marine robotics firms, mechanical engineers at green shipbuilding companies, and many more in an industry that employs over one million people across ports, shipping, business services, engineering, and leisure. With a sector that is becoming increasingly digitalised, computer science skills will be valuable for work including data analysis, forecasting and for the thriving robotics scene in maritime, with the increasing development of AI-powered vessels. The sector also promises futures for mechanical and electrical engineers to build tomorrow's wind farms, with the government recently announcing plans to quadruple offshore wind power by 2030. According to the Centre for Economics and Business Research's (CEBR) latest maritime report, maritime jobs are 45% more productive than the UK average and have 30% higher remuneration than the UK benchmark.