“Ideal Zev” Trains Sacramento Residents for Electric Vehicle Jobs; First Class Graduates Soon. Women and Recent Immigrants Among Participants. No Education Prerequisites; Virtual Training Available.

A group of 20 Sacramento area residents will soon be the first graduates of a unique state-funded program preparing them for jobs working with electric vehicles.

The program dubbed “Ideal Zev” aims to train 100 Sacramento residents to work in the fast-growing clean vehicle industry. The first graduating class is populated with recent immigrants from Afghanistan and Russia. The second class group – which is also underway – targeted women.

Community Resource Project is the leading gaggle non-profits implementing the California Energy Commission-funded program. Clean Starts is spearheading participant recruitment.

On a recent weekday, one of the program trainees Mohammed attended a meeting of the Sacramento Electric Vehicles Club at the California Automusem. There the former state department contractor gave a detailed presentation on electric vehicles. After the meeting, he exchanged information with a local businessman installing charging stations, a business Mohammed would like to start someday.

The ladies’ class is still learning the terms for the critical components. On a recent morning, a dozen women started the session identifying EV terms on a crossword puzzle, before downing bulky grey virtual reality headsets to practice changing an EV battery (and other tasks) in a virtual environment.

Observing the class is somewhat comical seeing the students move about, squatting, reaching, and manipulating virtual vehicle parts. Some are wearing baggy sweatshirts, others traditional Arab headcoverings.

The review session ended with a spirited game of EV Jeopardy with two of the three teams in a neck-and-neck battle for first place. The prize: pride.

The upcoming classes start in April, May, and June. Each has a slightly different target group. Class 3 seeking people with some background in construction or electrical starts on April 4. Class 4 seeks people with an automotive background and starts May 12. Class 5 is for youth between the ages of 18 and 25 and starts June 19.

There are no education prerequisites and those that don’t fit the class grouping description are still encouraged to apply.

Trainees receive 144 hours of training, learning about electric vehicle manufacturing, repair, and charging equipment installation.

The rapid adoption of electric vehicles is part of California’s strategy to curb emissions in response to climate change. In 2035, car dealerships will not be able to sell new internal combustion engine vehicles in California.

The rapid adoption of electric vehicles will only sharpen the shortage of technicians who can work on electric vehicles and charging infrastructure, industry officials say. The number of needed technicians is expected to grow by 23% by 2024, with median pay above $60,000 annually.

People seeking more information about the program or applying can do so here.