Working people across the United States have stepped up to help out our friends, neighbors and communities during these trying times. In our regular Service + Solidarity Spotlight series, we’ll showcase one of these stories every day. Here’s today’s story.
The Wyoming State AFL-CIO and its 18,000 union members are applauding Gov. Mark Gordon for investing money from the CARES Act into the state’s new “Energy Rebound Program” to keep energy workers on the job throughout the pandemic. The $15 million state initiative will save jobs in the struggling oil and gas sector. In a recent column for SweetwaterNOW, state federation Executive Secretary Tammy Johnson (USW) emphasized the importance of using the funding to keep in-state workers employed. “Done right, this cash will put hundreds of oil and gas workers back to work in the state. Yet this effort will miss its mark, if these dollars are not specifically earmarked to provide jobs to Wyoming workers,” she wrote.