Resource efficiency and Circular Economy in European SMEs: Investigating the role of green jobs and skills

TL;DR

This paper investigates how green jobs and skills influence resource efficiency practices in European SMEs, highlighting the importance of environmental expertise and firm characteristics in adopting circular economy strategies.

Contribution

It provides new insights into the role of green employment and skills in facilitating resource efficiency in SMEs across Europe, an area previously underexplored.

Findings

Lack of dedicated green workers reduces resource efficiency adoption.

Perceived need for environmental skills encourages future implementation.

Older and larger firms are more likely to adopt resource efficiency practices.

Abstract

Purpose of the paper: This paper explores size and potential of green employment for Circular Economy (CE) in SMEs in the European Union and investigates the role of green jobs and skills for the implementation of CE practices. Design/methodology/approach: The data are collected in a Eurobarometer survey, and refer to resource efficiency, green markets, and CE practices. Lack of environmental expertise is one of the factors that might be perceived as an obstacle when trying to implement resource efficiency actions. Previous research shows that, although resource efficiency practices are adopted by firms in all European countries, there are differences both within and between countries. The analysis of the determinants of green behavior by European SMEs is completed by a study of heterogeneity across firms and within countries with a multilevel latent class model, a hierarchical clustering method. Findings: A general important evidence is that having no workers dedicated to green jobs is strongly correlated to the probability of adopting resource efficiency practices, while perceiving the need of extra environmental skills has a positive effect on the intention to implement actions in the future. Other characteristics of the firms play a significant impact on resource efficiency: in general, older and bigger firms, with larger yearly turnover, are more prone to implement actions. The type of chosen action varies across activity sectors. What is original/value of paper: In the reference literature, the relationship between green jobs, environmental skills, workers employed in CE practices, and resource efficiency has received limited attention so far.