Danish maker of wind turbines is hiring for 100 positions at its Brighton plant
Employees work on vortex generators at Vestas Blades in this 2011 file photo.
A political compromise that lifted the ban on U.S. oil exports in return for an extension of wind and solar power tax credits is paying off in Brighton with 100 new manufacturing jobs.
Vestas Wind Systems, the Danish maker of wind turbines, is holding job fairs this week in Denver to vet applicants for positions that will pay $16.95 an hour and carry full benefits.
Congress extended a 2.3-cent-per-kilowatt-hour production tax credit for wind power in December as part of a broader push to win support for a lifting of a four-decade ban on exports of U.S. crude oil.
The wind credit will phase out by 2020, but the extension has helped reduce uncertainty for those investing in wind turbines.
The federal Clean Power Plan, which requires states to reduce carbon emissions from utility plants by about a third, if not more, by 2030, is expected to boost demand for wind and solar sources.
Back in 2012, Vestas Colorado's operations looked on the ropes after the expiration of the wind power tax credit caused employment to fall to 1,000 from 1,700 .
Now the company is back to 3,100 jobs at its Brighton, Windsor and Pueblo plants, with 350 hires in August alone.
With the metro Denver unemployment rate at a low 3.2 percent, finding workers may prove more challenging than in the past. Employment agency Manpower, which is charged with finding the workers Vestas needs, said in an e-mail that some applicants may be hired on the spot at job fairs it is holding.
Manpower has held two days of job fairs and will hold two more — from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Wednesday and Friday at its Denver office, 1560 Broadway, Suite 100.
Applicants should have at least a high school diploma or equivalent and be able to pass a drug, background check and physical test.
Vestas is seeking at least a year experience in construction, automotive, manufacturing, production or manufacturing. Applicants should set aside enough time to spend an hour or two at the job fair.
Although the labor market is tight, the ongoing drop in oil prices is expected to shake loose more workers from northern Colorado's oil fields this year. But the adjustment could be a hard one.
Petroleum sector pay averaged more than $105,000 in 2014, nearly double the state average, according to a report from the University of Colorado. The new Vestas jobs at its Brighton blade and nacelle plant, by contrast, will pay just above $35,000 a year.
