IBEW President Lonnie Stephenson on VP Biden’s Clean-Energy Plan

IBEW International President Lonnie R. Stephenson issued the following statement regarding Joe Biden’s clean-energy plan:

“Vice President Joe Biden’s clean energy plan is more than just an ambitious and comprehensive blueprint to combat climate change and put our country on the path to a sustainable future. It is a massive investment in millions of American jobs, doing everything from rebuilding our crumbling infrastructure to retrofitting tens of thousands of homes and offices.

“As president of the IBEW, the largest union of electrical workers in the nation, I’m pleased that it will create so many jobs in nearly every sector of the workforce we represent, including construction, utility, telecommunications, manufacturing, and railroad. Joe Biden has made it clear that any new federal investments must support American jobs and American made products.

“This plan will spur a renaissance in American manufacturing while creating numerous good jobs for electricians by using the power of the federal government to encourage demand for electric vehicles.

“It will also put Americans to work rebuilding our aged transportation infrastructure, including investing in our railroads, which means more good rail jobs.

“These are vital jobs that our nation needs more than ever. And by strictly enforcing prevailing wage, workplace protections, and supporting the right of workers to organize unions and bargain collectively, the plan ensures that these will be good, middle-class sustaining jobs.

“Confronting the challenge of climate change while ensuring America’s energy security requires tapping into all of our clean power sources, including solar, wind, hydro, and nuclear, and investing in new green technologies like advanced battery storage and carbon capture utilization and sequestration.  Vice President Biden’s plan does that with an inclusive and balanced approach to investing in our energy and economic future.

“The men and women of the IBEW have been part of American’s clean-energy revolution for years now. We look forward to working with a Biden administration in building a clean and sustainable economy that can both save our planet and help rebuild the American middle class.“