Just Transition in the US: Can union-led climate policy deliver for workers and communities?

This blog post was authored by a human with the assistance of Microsoft Copilot (GPT5), an AI writing tool, to help structure and articulate the content. It is based on research and analysis presented in the “US Case Report – Labor unions and a Just Transition in the United States” report. This report was produced as part of the “Just Transitions: A Global Exploration” project, funded by the Hans Böckler Foundation and led by Professor Vera Trappmann. All interpretations and summaries in this blog post reflect the original human-authored research and report.    

The United States remains one of the world’s largest emitters of carbon emissions, with extensive fossil-fuel infrastructure and workforces reliant on jobs in the coal, oil, and gas, industries.  

Federal climate action has been limited: while the 2022 Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) introduced major clean-energy incentives with some support for labour standards, subsequent policy rollbacks have challenged momentum and retrenched reliance on fossil fuels. Clean-energy industries - especially solar and wind - have grown, but many jobs remain non-union and precarious, raising concerns about job quality and worker protection. 

Historically, parts of the labour movement aligned with fossil fuel interests to protect jobs, but recent years have seen broader support for climate policy - particularly where legislation includes labour standards and creates clear pipelines into good union jobs. 

Our research draws on interviews with labour leaders across energy, construction, utilities, manufacturing, and public-sector unions, alongside public statements and legislative analysis. It explores how unions define and shape policy around a just transition, where tensions persist, and how state-level climate jobs coalitions are impacting policy and implementation in the US.  

Using the Climate Jobs National Resource Center as a case study 

The Climate Jobs National Resource Center (CJNRC) is a US non‑profit formed by current and former labour leaders to help unions develop and advance state‑level climate agendas that combine decarbonisation with high‑quality, unionised jobs. Working through coalitions in states such as New York, Illinois, Maine, Rhode Island, Connecticut, and Texas CJNRC supports research, member education, and coordinated lobbying to enanct labour standards - such as prevailing wage, project labour agreements, apprenticeships and labour‑peace clauses (provisions requiring employer neutrality during union organising) - into clean‑energy policy and procurement. 

We used CJNRC as a case study because it exemplifies a proactive, union‑led approach to climate policy, contrasting with earlier strategies that focused only on mitigating plant closures. CJNRC demonstrates how labour can move beyond opposing climate action to actively design and advocate for policies that create unionised jobs in the clean‑energy economy.  

This case was selected as it demonstrates how unions can bridge historic divides within the US labour movement, achieve tangible legislative successes in guaranteeing labour standards on renewable energy projects, and offer a replicable model for leveraging unions’ organising and lobbying power in a context where federal climate action has been inconsistent and often hostile. This makes CJNRC an ideal lens to explore whether state‑driven, worker‑led initiatives can deliver both climate goals and social justice. 

Key findings 

Labour’s approach is shifting from rhetoric to concrete policy design. 
Union leaders acknowledge that past US industrial transitions often devastated communities, with inadequate support and weak pathways to new work. In response, unions now push for detailed guarantees: multi-year wage and benefit replacement for displaced fossil-fuel workers; funded training tied to real jobs; and strong standards in the clean-energy sector, including prevailing wage, project labour agreements (pre-hire agreements guaranteeing union labour and standards on specific projects), apprenticeships, and labour-peace clauses. 

The Inflation Reduction Act helped unify labour - but does not deliver a full transition. 
The IRA’s bonus credits for prevailing wage and apprenticeships demonstrated the broad union support across building trades, utilities, manufacturing, and service sectors. Yet many unions still focus on adding clean-energy jobs without endorsing fossil fuel drawdown (a rapid reduction in fossil fuel use and production in the near future). Many unions support “all-of-the-above” approaches - such as carbon capture and hydrogen - to preserve craft and regional employment. 

State climate jobs coalitions are delivering enforceable labour standards. 
CJNRC-linked coalitions have secured requirements for prevailing wages, project labour agreements, apprenticeships, and labour-peace agreements on large renewable projects in several states. These provisions raise job quality, increase wages across the industry, and can extend protections beyond construction into operations and maintenance. 

Buildings and public services offer scalable, equity-aligned job creation. 
Beyond utility-scale renewables (large solar and wind projects supplying power to the grid), coalitions are advancing “Carbon-Free and Healthy Schools” programmes that combine electrification, efficiency retrofits, onsite solar, and electric buses, leveraging public funding to create union jobs and improve learning environments. 

Who is covered remains contested. 
Traditional just transition discussions focus on fossil-fuel workers in extraction and generation. There are often-overlooked workers along the supply chain and frontline communities that experience exposure to pollution and its health impacts. Coalitions that integrate environmental-justice priorities - such as through inclusive apprenticeships - can build wider support. 

From reactive to proactive: unions as climate policy leaders. 
CJNRC coalitions invert the “wait for closure” model (reacting only after fossil plants shut down) by drafting comprehensive climate job agendas and lobbying statehouses to embed mandates. This proactive stance positions unions as central actors in decarbonization, capable of advancing worker power in new industries while shaping how the transition unfolds. 

Implications for policymakers and industry stakeholders 

The findings from this case study highlight several practical steps that policymakers and industry stakeholders can take to ensure the energy transition delivers both climate goals and social justice. 

Embed enforceable labour standards in climate policy. 
Use mandates - such as prevailing wage, Project Labour Agreements, apprenticeships, and labour-peace clauses - to ensure clean-energy jobs are high quality and union-friendly. This creates stability for workers and reduces project risk for developers. 

Plan closures and transitions explicitly.  
Pair clean-energy build-out with funded support for displaced workers and communities, including income replacement, retraining linked to guaranteed jobs, and regional investment. 

Broaden participation.  
Involve environmental justice organisations and frontline communities in governance and planning to ensure equity and build public trust and community acceptance for projects. 

Address supply chains.  
Extend labour standards into manufacturing and logistics, using domestic-content incentives and community-benefit agreements to align industrial policy with job creation. 

The US has the capability to ensure a just transition when climate policy is worker-led, state-driven, and anchored by enforceable standards and real investment. CJNRC’s coalitions show that unions can be powerful climate policy leaders - bridging historic divides, upgrading job quality in renewables, and advancing practical programmes in schools, buildings, and manufacturing.  

To meet climate goals, policymakers and unions should lean into this model: plan transitions, locate funding supports, ensure standards are mandated, and partner with communities from the start.

Read the full report: Labor unions and a Just Transition in the United States. 
 
Visit the project website for additional country case studies and insights.