AFL-CIO President Liz Shuler released the following statement on a new rule from the Biden administration to ensure that workers on projects funded by the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) receive fair wages, in compliance with the federal law’s “prevailing wage” statute:
These new wage regulations are a historic win for working people, made possible with the culmination of decades of advocacy by the labor movement and years of work by the Biden–Harris administration. Today, we fulfill one of the key promises of the Inflation Reduction Act: that we can create good-paying union jobs and advance clean energy policy at the same time. By bringing the full weight of federal law to secure fair wages on IRA-funded projects, the Biden–Harris administration is ensuring that workers who join the clean energy sector can keep earning wages in line with those they’ve won through hard-fought contract negotiations. The regulations will encourage developers to do right by the workers they hire, support the increase of apprenticeships, and build the clean energy workforce.
Union members are ready to work—and now, with the opportunity for fair wages, we will build the economy of the future, just as we have with every technological advancement in our country’s history.
Contact: Mia Jacobs, 202-637-5018