[by Jeremy Brecher and Brendan Smith] More than two million American construction workers — nearly one in five — are currently unemployed. Factories that produce building materials are operating at only half their capacity. So when a private company proposes a project that it claims will spur the creation of [...]

Why Climate Change Matters for California Workers [A Discussion Paper by the Labor Network for Sustainability; PDF version with footnotes is available here] California is at the forefront of driving the expansion of the clean energy economy. California’s groundbreaking climate law, the Global Warming Solutions Act  — AB 32 — is the most comprehensive climate legislation enacted [...]

On 10/10/10 thousands of organizations around the world will be holding a GLOBAL WORK PARTY for the “BIGGEST DAY OF PRACTICAL ACTION TO CUT CARBON THAT THE WORLD HAS EVER SEEN.” The climate protection movement 350.org is especially encouraging unions and their members to participate in this “Day to Celebrate Climate Solutions.” Many unions are already involved [...]

Some unions dissented early from AFL-CIO climate policy.  In 1990 the Steelworkers, America’s largest and most diversified manufacturing union with a strong history of environmentalism created an executive board committee on environmental issues and issued a policy statement saying that global warming “may be the single greatest problem we face. Some have compared its possible [...]