Celebrating workers, unions and an opportunity for a sustainable future this Labor Day

For many working Americans, Labor Day feels different this year. We’re in our second year of a pandemic that has placed even more pressure on families. The continuing instability in many parts of our economy, the growing national reckoning over racial justice and the disastrous effects of climate change which have brought us unprecedented wildfires, droughts and flooding have all converged on a moment that feels stark and pivotal.

In the face of these challenges, however, there also lives an opportunity. To do a reset. To craft the America of tomorrow by righting the policies of yesterday. To create sustainable communities, jobs and environment. 

We have that opportunity right now in the auto industry as we transition from internal combustion engines to electric vehicles. This is a necessary shift, and one our union supports. Auto workers — like all Americans — want a country and a world where our children and communities can thrive. Electric vehicles are one of the critical ways to achieve that.

This transition can benefit the environment, workers, and our communities alike. Too often, those interests are pitted against each other by corporations which are ultimately guided by their need for profit. It doesn’t have to be this way. 

We all benefit when the jobs that will be created with new technologies are safe and family sustaining, where workers have a voice on the job and a contract that they bargain. We’ve already seen an example of how a manufacturer of EV vehicles is willing to break the law to keep workers from coming together. We must stand together to hold Tesla and other companies accountable so they cannot use this moment to pull workers down. The U.S. needs an electric vehicle industry that incentivizes good union jobs that are safe and offer job security and middle-class wages. Workers in emerging industries must be able to freely organize without employer interference.

We also must stand with current auto workers whose jobs will change.  We will fight for them at the bargaining table, but everyone should have an interest in utilizing their skill and expertise as the industry changes. The federal government will support the transition to EV vehicles by funding necessary infrastructure changes. Taxpayers will want to know that their investment was not used to deplete communities and displace workers.

As I think about the challenges we face this Labor Day, I feel optimistic about the future. We stand with others who are fighting for a vision of the future where people are put before profits. Where we work towards a zero-emission economy that doesn’t exploit workers in new jobs or dispose of workers in old ones. The pandemic woke Americans to the reality that workers in our factories, grocery stores, schools and hospitals are crucial to this nation’s success. We’ve stepped up to the plate in the past two years, and we will continue to heed the call when our nation faces new challenges and changes.

Auto workers know what solidarity can achieve. Together, let’s ensure the coming transitions bring opportunity, prosperity and a bright future for all of us.

Ray Curry is the President of the UAW, which represents 400,000 active members and over 600,000 retirees in the United States, Canada and Puerto Rico.