State of the Unions: Navigating Job Creation and Destruction

Climate One

Social Sciences, News Commentary, Science, Earth Sciences, News

4.7 • 585 Ratings

🗓️ 28 January 2022

⏱️ 56 minutes

🔗️ Recording | Apple Podcasts | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

With expanding electrical infrastructure and some jurisdictions beginning to ban gas appliances in new construction, the transition to a clean energy economy is already happening. Understandably, labor unions that represent workers tied to the fossil fuel infrastructure are digging in their heels. While recognizing that climate change is a threat, the Laborers’ International Union of North America and the Utility Workers Union of America are skeptical of promises of a just transition, saying green jobs are typically non-union and pay far less. So how can we transition to a low-carbon economy while protecting good-paying jobs? Guests: Austin Keyser, Assistant to the International President for Government Affairs at International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW) Yvette Pena-O'Sullivan, Executive Director, Office of the General President, LiUNA Lee Anderson, Director of Government Affairs, Utility Workers Union of America Carol Zabin, Director, Green Economy Program, UC Berkeley Labor Center Norman Rogers, Second Vice President of United Steelworkers, California Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcript

Click on a timestamp to play from that location

0:00.0	AI is incredible. They can teach you how to fry an egg and even write a poem, pirate style.
0:07.0	But it knows nothing about your work. Slackbot is different. It doesn't just know the facts.
0:14.0	It knows your schedule. It can turn a brainstorm into a brief and it doesn't need to be taught.
0:20.0	Because Slackbot isn't just another AI.
0:23.3	It's AI that knows your work as well as you do. Visit Slack.com forward slash meet Slackbot to learn more.
0:30.1	Hi, it's Greg Dalton. I'd like to hear your comments on the show, topics we should cover and guest
0:35.3	suggestions. You can reach me at Greg at climate one.org.
0:39.6	This is Climate One. I'm Greg Dalton. Addressing climate change means overhauling all the
0:45.2	systems around us. There are certain things that are such critical infrastructure that we have to
0:49.6	invest in quickly fast now to mitigate against climate change that we are seeing.
0:55.3	But that transition will disrupt the fossil fuel industry.
0:59.0	Many unions are concerned about job losses and what follows.
1:03.1	It's not just that a job is lost.
1:04.9	It's that maybe now you've got to move two states away to get another job.
1:08.5	And pretty soon your community is emptied out and there's this diaspora. So how can we protect workers as they navigate through job destruction and creation?
1:17.1	It's really about trying to make sure that whatever those 20 million jobs are being created
1:21.4	are ones that are high road, hopefully union, good paying jobs and ones that we can, you know, be
1:27.3	proud of and ones that
1:28.6	the workers feel like they can provide for their families.
1:31.4	How can unions help protect workers during the energy transition?
1:35.5	As President Biden centers his climate plans on jobs, labor unions are jockeying for position
1:40.9	in the transition to clean energy.
	...

Please login to see the full transcript.

Previous episode | Next episode

Disclaimer: The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from Climate One, and are the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Tapesearch.

Generated transcripts are the property of Climate One and are distributed freely under the Fair Use doctrine. Transcripts generated by Tapesearch are not guaranteed to be accurate.