Green jobs must mean good jobs that respect labor
Green jobs can never help rebuild our economy if the industry is not built with respect and dignity for the workers who will be doing the heavy lifting, write guest columnists and labor leaders Rick Bender and Tom Chamberlain. They discuss examples of companies moving plants across state borders for access to lower-cost labor and richer tax breaks.
in March 2007, SolarWorld purchased a facility in Hillsboro, Ore. The company was lured there in part by $43 million in tax breaks and public subsidies. SolarWorld jumped at this opportunity to move its operation to a new facility. But at the same time, they adamantly rejected requests by the Machinist Union to remain neutral in any efforts to unionize the Oregon work force. New employees at the Hillsboro facility were offered much lower pay than the ... Full Story »
Posted by Dwight Rousu
