Ford Foundation Highlights the Work of GWA

We are excited to present the Ford Foundation's article highlighting the efforts of GWA to enhance conditions in the renewable energy sector. The article features solar worker and GWA activist DaShawn Beaulieu, along with other inspiring leaders from four grantees, who are employing innovative strategies to organize workers in temporary and similarly precarious jobs.

DaShawn spoke about the problems of the employment model in his field. “There’s a tremendous amount of opportunity within solar, but it’s very rough work, and there’s always a threat of imminent danger. It’s a free-for-all with no protection; if someone gets injured at work, there’s nobody to call... To eliminate a bunch of that liability, the companies always go through a temp agency.” I was also quoted in the piece, laying out the stark choice facing this industry: “There are two paths forward. There’s continuing on this race-to-the-bottom path, where work in this industry and others is being done by folks who are taken advantage of as long as the companies can get away with it. And the other path is to come up with a high-road model: helping people with issues on the job, building worker power. That’s the start to transforming this industry.” And that is precisely what GWA is doing!

We are grateful for the Ford Foundation's support and leadership on these issues and excited to learn from the efforts of the Model Alliance, Grassroots Law & Organizing for Workers (GLOW), Worker’s Justice Project, and For the Many, all of which were featured in the article.

Highlights from 2024

GWA Goes to Washington

GWA held its first-ever lobby day in DC on November 19, with members Patrick Foeday, Felicia Allen, Josh Dixon, and Arlo Nichols meeting with Congressional staff and OSHA leadership. They also spoke at a book reception for "Power Lines: Building a Labor-Climate Movement," which features a chapter about GWA.

The GWA leaders met with the staff of their members of Congress, all Republicans, talking to them about the importance of the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA). In their visits to House offices, they emphasized how the law has increased employment in the sector and brought money into Congressional districts across the country. These visits were particularly important now since the bill passed with no Republican support, and some members of the new Congressional majority want to cut or eliminate the law to pay for extensions of tax cuts from the first Trump administration. We had frank discussions with several staffers and were encouraged that at least parts of the law would survive. We intend to continue this work with in-district meetings and potentially more lobby visits to DC in 2025.

"I'll be honest," Arlo reflected, "I never expected nor wanted to be a lobbyist in my life, even for a day. However, to see average Americans there to lobby for addiction treatment and green energy like us, was inspiring to me, how close anyone could get. The aides for Representative Fitzpatrick listened to us, took notes, and asked questions, and suddenly, shockingly, I felt a little less despondent about politics in America."

Patrick added, "I had an incredible experience participating in GWA leaders' first-ever Lobby Day. Discussing the importance of saving the IRA's clean energy incentives and meeting with staff from four Republican House members is no small feat. Lobby Days like this one play a significant role in shaping policy and raising awareness about critical issues. By sharing my experience, I'm helping to amplify our message and inspire others to take action."

While in DC, we also met with Scott Ketcham, the director of OSHA's directorate of enforcement programs, and several other staff from OSHA to raise health and safety concerns in the wind and solar fields. We had a great conversation and were able to make the staff aware of several issues in the renewable field. They committed to connecting us with other OSHA departments we can work with. We're excited about this new partnership!

Finally, the book reception was a great opportunity to connect with friends and allies, and we were pleased to be joined by speakers Jeff Ordower, North American director of 350.org and Batul Hassan, labor director of the Climate and Community Institute.

Thanks to LIUNA for hosting us and the Utility Workers of America for helping set up the meeting with OSHA. It was a great few days in DC, and we're excited to keep the progress going in the new year.