Business & Economy
Growth seen in alternative energy jobs
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By EDITH ZHOU
Capital News Service
LANSING –Michigan manufacturers employ 498,000 people, and more than 20,700 of them are in the alternative energy industry. According to the Michigan Manufacturers Association, these alternative energy production jobs account for 4.1 percent of all manufacturing jobs. The state Bureau of Labor Market Information counted less than 9,000 jobs in the alternative energy industry in 2009. The number of jobs grew by 133 percent in three years, partly because Michigan is home to the continent’s largest lithium ion battery manufacturer. The bureau found the wind energy industry is the biggest economic winner among renewable energy technologies.