Biden, Mitchell Jeopardize New Bedford Fishing Industry [OPINION]
Democrats from Joe Biden to Jon Mitchell are doing a happy dance over a deal signed last week that promises hundreds of jobs to union workers if the construction of a planned offshore wind farm commences off the Massachusetts coast. Union labor had a similar deal to build the Dakota XL Pipeline, didn t they? They aren t dancing anymore.
Mitchell even went so far as to announce a deal that could see acres of land along the New Bedford waterfront converted for staging operations for wind farm construction – but don t expect anything to happen there for several years at least.
NEW BEDFORD More than 500 high-paying union jobs are among the thousands of positions coming to New Bedford along with the first industrial-scale offshore wind facility in the United States.
That s a guarantee given in an agreement between Vineyard Wind and the Southeastern Massachusetts Building Trades Council that was signed before a group of leaders and policymakers at the edge of the city s harbor on Friday.
Senators Elizabeth Warren and Ed Markey, White House National Climate Advisor Gina McCarthy, and Congressmen Bill Keating and Jake Auchincloss spoke on the occasion, along with Mayor Jon Mitchell and state, local, union and business officials.