Bloomberg Businessweek

The U.S. solar energy industry added jobs at about 5.74 times the rate of the rest of the economy in the 12 months ended in September, according to a report from the Solar Foundation.

The industry added 13,872 workers, boosting the solar workforce by 13.2 percent to 119,016 at the end of the period, the Washington-based non-profit organization said in an e-mailed statement. The employment growth rate in the total economy was 2.3 percent in the same period, the group said.