Domestic Renewable Manufacturing Ramps Up

The Biden administration invoked the Defense Production Act to ease supply chain issues around solar panels on June 6, while continuing its investigation into possible Chinese trade violations.

Taken together, IBEW President Lonnie Stephenson said the suite of executive actions will build America’s energy arsenal and spur domestic energy manufacturing while reducing energy costs, supporting good-paying union jobs, and strengthening U.S. energy independence while maintaining strong labor standards.

“The outsourcing of critical American goods like solar panels has weakened supply chains and increased reliance on overseas production with limited labor and environmental standards,” Stephenson said. “We have long opposed solar panel dumping in the United States and will continue to do so.”

As a union that represents workers in the manufacturing sector, the IBEW has opposed any attempts by the industry to circumvent policies put in place to protect U.S. workers, the economy, and competitiveness.

International competition has wiped out hundreds of thousands of IBEW jobs engineering, building and assembling electrical equipment, components, and consumer and industrial products.

“The decimation of the domestic manufacturing industry will take years to repair, but these actions are a step in the right direction,” Stephenson said.