Anti-Data Center Movement Is on Collision Course With Labor Unions

0 Share Newsweek is a Trust Project member See more of our trusted coverage when you search. Prefer Newsweek on Google to see more of our trusted coverage when you search. Calls for a data center moratorium have surged across the country amid concerns about their impact on local communities and the environment—but labor unions are embracing their construction.

The growth of artificial intelligence -powered data centers, which require large amounts of electricity and water to cool servers, has sparked fierce debate amid the AI boom .

Critics have raised numerous concerns about the centers, including their impact on the environment , the amount of water they use, their potential to drive up electricity bills and the noise they generate in communities. Proponents, however, have said embracing AI is critical for states’ economic growth, and that communities opposing the rapidly developing technology could be left behind.

Labor unions are supporting data center construction, viewing the AI boom as an opportunity to boost the number of well-paying union jobs despite a grassroots push for governments to oppose their construction.

It’s a source of political tension for Democrats, as both labor unions and environmental groups, advocating against data centers, are key parts of its coalition. The construction of data centers could become a divisive political topic ahead of the midterms.

Patrick Crowley, the president of the Rhode Island AFL-CIO, told Newsweek that data centers are going to be necessary in the growing digital economy and that labor unions having a seat at the table can ensure opportunity to “build them right.”

“We'd rather see a data center built in a state like Rhode Island that has strong labor standards as well as strong environmental standards instead of in a state that's a right to work state with weak environmental standards because we know the harm that these could potentially cause if they're not regulated and built the right way,” he said.

Unions in numerous states are supporting the construction of data centers. In states like California, Illinois, Minnesota and Pennsylvania, organized labor has advocated for policies that would incentivize their construction while opposing data center moratoriums.

For instance, Climate Jobs Illinois, a group affiliated with the state’s AFL-CIO, wrote a letter to Democratic Governor JB Pritzker raising concerns about a proposed tax credit to incentivize data centers in his budget address.

“Data center development is increasingly part of that economic and energy future. These facilities represent billions of dollars in private investment, thousands of union construction jobs, and long-term opportunities for Illinois workers across the building trades, electrical sector, and energy infrastructure workforce,” the letter, provided to Newsweek, reads.

They urged Pritzker to preserve competitiveness for data centers, ensure projects create union jobs, support the building of infrastructure, while protecting the privacy and rights of Illinois residents, according to the letter.

In June, however, Pritzker directed his administration to “pause the processing of data center agreements while we continue working with the General Assembly and stakeholders on a comprehensive framework that protects affordability, safeguards our natural resources, and ensures responsible growth across Illinois,” he said in a statement.

“Illinois has an opportunity to continue leading in technological innovation and economic growth, but we also have a responsibility to protect working families and local communities as the data center industry rapidly expands,” he said.

Kristine Kavanagh, communications director for the International Union of Operating Engineers Local 150, which represents operating engineers in Illinois, Indiana and Iowa, told Newsweek that the union supports building data centers, but that must come with responsibility.

“These projects should be built with local union labor, strong labor standards, and real commitments to the communities where they are located. Local 150 is not saying concerns about energy, water, or community impact should be ignored. We are saying those concerns can and should be addressed through thoughtful planning, not blanket moratoriums that drive jobs and investment to other states,” she said.

She said lawmakers have been “receptive” to their concerns about data centers.

Rejecting data centers doesn’t eliminate demand for AI, she said, and a better approach includes “responsible siting, energy planning, water protections, local hiring commitments, and union labor standards.”

In Minnesota, lawmakers failed to pass new regulations on data centers despite a push from some lawmakers and activists amid labor pushback, reported MPR News.

Dan McConnell, president of the Minnesota State Building and Construction Trades Council, told Newsweek that data center projects create “substantial work” for skilled workers such as electricians, pipe fitters, plumbers, laborers, operating engineers, ironworkers, carpenters and sheet metal workers.

He said he is concerned the “hysteria” around data centers could lead to an environment where elected officials are afraid to even engage in a conversation with stakeholders, including unions, about how to build data centers in a safe, responsible way. When done correctly, he said he believes workers can be protected while states like Minnesota can also increase their tax base.

“If we just say, ‘No we don’t want these things,’ you can’t have a conversation about how to make the project better,” he said.

He said it is “frustrating” when policymakers treat data centers as an “all-or-nothing proposition.”

His union’s goal is to make sure the jobs created by the data center boom are not “temporary” or “low-road.” Governments, he said, should adopt “predictable” rules instead of blanket bans, and they should be expected to pay their fair share of energy, water, infrastructure and tax co...

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