VIDEO: Heinrich, Schatz, Senate Democrats Host Roundtable with Labor Leaders to Discuss the Future of the Energy Workforce

WASHINGTON – Yesterday, U.S. Senator Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.), Ranking Member of the U.S. Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, and U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D-Hawai‘i) convened a roundtable with labor leaders to discuss the future of America's energy workforce and the policies needed to create good-paying union jobs, strengthen domestic manufacturing, and build the energy infrastructure to power the nation.

During the roundtable, Heinrich highlighted his newly introduced Pre-Apprenticeships to Hardhats (PATH) Act legislation to strengthen the pipeline to high-quality careers by expanding access to registered pre-apprenticeship programs, addressing workforce shortages, and connecting more Americans with the skills needed to fill in-demand jobs across the energy, manufacturing, and construction sectors.

From 2021 through 2024, the United States experienced an unprecedented clean energy manufacturing boom, spurred by historic investments in domestic manufacturing and energy infrastructure. Those investments helped spur hundreds of billions of dollars in private-sector investment, supported new factories across the country, and created hundreds of thousands of jobs in battery manufacturing, solar, transmission, advanced manufacturing, and other energy industries.

But as Heinrich, Schatz, and a number of their Democratic colleagues pointed out, Republicans' repeal of key energy tax credits has already begun reversing that progress. Since January 2025, companies have canceled, delayed, or scaled back projects that would have created more than 100,000 anticipated clean energy jobs, creating uncertainty for workers, manufacturers, and communities that were counting on those investments.

VIDEO: U.S. Senator Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.), Ranking Member of the U.S. Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, and U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D- Hawai‘i), host a roundtable on the future of America’s energy workforce, July 14, 2026. 

“My dad was an IBEW lineman, and he spent his career working on the grid that kept our community firm. Because he had a good union job, he could reliably provide for my family, buy a home, and give myself and my siblings opportunities that he never had — opportunities that neither of my parents had — and that's what good energy jobs have always meant. They power the American dream,” said Heinrich. “We need policies that make it easier to build big things in America again. That's why I'm introducing the Pre-Apprenticeships to Hardhats or PATH Act today. That legislation will strengthen the pipeline to careers by expanding access to quality pre-apprenticeship programs, helping to address the workforce shortages we're seeing, and growing our economy by connecting more people with the skills they need to succeed.”

Heinrich continued, “When we build here, we create jobs here — and when we create jobs here, we strengthen communities all across this great country.”

“The Trump administration’s attacks on clean energy are costing working people in lost jobs and higher bills all across the country. Clean energy is cheap energy, and we need durable policies that lower costs for Americans and provide certainty for the workers who power our energy infrastructure,” said Schatz. 

Heinrich and Schatz’s roundtable was joined by U.S. Senator Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y), Senate Democratic Leader, U.S. Senator Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.), Ranking Member of the U.S. Senate Environment and Public Works Committee, U.S. Senator Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.), U.S. Senator Peter Welch (D-Vt.), U.S. Senator Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.), U.S. Senator Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.), U.S. Senator Tina Smith (D-Minn.), Ed Markey (D-Mass.), U.S. Senator Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.), U.S. Senator Ron Wyden (D-Ore.), along with President of AFL-CIO Liz Shuler, General President of LIUNA Brent Booker, President of IUE-CWA Carl Kennebrew, Maryland State Senator and IBEW Local 24 Vice President Cory McCray, Director of USW District 1 Donnie Blatt, and Executive Director of BlueGreen Alliance Jason Walsh.

“Investments in clean energy lower home energy bills, create good-paying union jobs, and strengthen American manufacturing—a win-win-win for workers, families, and communities,” said Leader Schumer. “Senate Democrats are fighting to lower costs and raise wages – that is the formula for making life more affordable – and when we take back the Senate, we will power the future with clean energy built and manufactured by union workers. Republicans can side with Big Oil and foreign supply chains, but we're with America’s working families.” 

“We are now at a place where there is no remaining pathway to climate safety if the fossil fuel industry’s free-to-pollute business model continues. We’ve run by all those highway exits, so we absolutely have to look at price on pollution. Pollute-for-free is just a no go,” said Whitehouse.

“As the Trump administration attacks clean energy, blocking opportunities for good-paying jobs and raising Americans’ electric bills, we must push back. We need solutions that meet the moment and promote competitive U.S. clean energy technologies. I will continue fighting to tackle rising costs and support a cleaner, greener energy future,” said Van Hollen. 

“Congress plays an important role in helping meet the needs of the American people and American workers. A big part of that must be investing in clean energy—not because it’s the right thing to do, but because it’s the necessary thing to do. We need industrial policy that’s good for workers, good for America, and good for the economy,” said Welch. “We’ll keep fighting for good jobs for hardworking people.”

“Back at the start of the Biden administration, I was in discussions with some of the construction building trade leaders. The question was, how are we going to try to make sure that our investments in infrastructure in this country result in union jobs, particularly in the clean energy sector, so I came up with this idea of amplifying the tax credits and deductions... In 2022, when we passed the IRA, we got a structure, not with everything we had in the original bill, but prevailing wage and apprenticeships were really the key focus, and it amplified the tax credits fivefold if there was a project labor agreement related to prevailing wages and apprenticeships,” said Merkley. 

“There is such an opportunity for us on climate, yes, but on jobs,” said Klobuchar. “My state, we just had a record 64,000 clean energy jobs — growing twice as fast as all sectors of our state’s economy.”

“There’s some new research out of Minnesota that shows that the Trump administration’s de facto freeze on wind energy has put 1,200 construction jobs, over 4,000 indirect and induced jobs, and $168 million dollars of economic impact all at risk because of their ideological attack on this one kind of energy, which is actually the most affordable kind of energy,” said Smith.

“[Trump] declared a war on Iran for energy. He declared war on Venezuela for energy. He wants to declare war on Greenland for energy. But he’s declared war on the East Coast and their energy plan, and those are almost all union jobs,” said Markey. 

“We should be advocating for the fact that [Trump] curtailed this development of skilling and training for higher-wage jobs but now can’t even get an infrastructure bill out the door,” said Cantwell. “You’re not just constraining the worker, but the company, the community, [and] the competitive level of our nation.” 

“There is this extraordinary opportunity to create incentives for what we want to do,” said Wyden. “Trump still is trying to figure out how to help some of his friends because they know that we’re right in terms of clean energy credits. And now the question is, we’ve got to make sure that we understand where we go from here.”

"The labor movement is united on our goals for the future of the energy sector. We want a world where union workers are building, operating, and maintaining an all-of-the-above approach, where we’re investing in an affordable clean energy economy, and we’re protecting our communities from climate change—all at the same time. But the Trump administration has rolled back the progress we made on energy, manufacturing, and construction jobs and technology through the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act and the Inflation Reduction Act. We know there's a better path forward—including restoring that transformative legislation—and labor is committed to partnering with pro-worker elected officials and candidates to get there," said Liz Shuler, President of AFL-CIO. 

“The 540,000 members of the Laborers' International Union of North America are the backbone of our nation's infrastructure. Every single day, the highly-skilled men and women of LIUNA build the foundation of our nation’s economy. Nowhere is that impact felt more acutely than in the energy sector. For our members, an energy job isn't just a paycheck—it is a ticket to the middle class. When their livelihoods are under attack, it's up to us to stand up and fight because the path to energy security and economic prosperity runs directly through organized labor,” said Brent Booker, General President of LIUNA. 

“We have seen what is possible from the investment resulting from the Inflation Reduction Act... Most importantly, our union secured a labor peace agreement, setting a new industry standard that protects workers' rights to organize without fear of retaliation. When the Trump administration moved to block and shut down offshore wind plants, it stopped the creation of manufacturing jobs that IUE-CWA had prepared to organize and delayed the ratification of our energy agreement. The IRA focused on subsidizing energy generation, but going forward, we also need stronger policies to ensure that the equipment is manufactured domestically and we can rely on made-in-America green energy,” said Carl Kennebrew, President of IUE-CWA.

“The apprenticeship is what shifted my trajectory... When I think about the apprenticeship experience, from lived experience as a member of the Maryland General Assembly, sitting in the Maryland State Senate, one of the only members that has graduated from a registered apprenticeship program, I tell folks about discipline, the opportunity to learn, and mentorship... As I think about 2026 and where we sit now, many people may think that workers are scared or concerned about change. Senator Heinrich, I think you said it right. I don't think workers are scared about change. I think they're scared about uncertainty,” said Cory McCray, Maryland State Senator and IBEW Local 24 Vice President. 

“USW members proudly work in a wide variety of industries critical to supporting clean energy, including steel, aluminum, cement, glass, and more. As we look to secure a strong future for workers and their communities, we must continue investing in next-generation technologies, building an economy that supports good union jobs, while also keeping us competitive on the global stage. We thank Sens. Heinrich and Schatz and their colleagues for holding this important conversation to discuss policies that support both clean energy and a strong domestic manufacturing base,” said Donnie Blatt, USW District 1 Director.

“When Donald Trump stepped into the Oval Office in January 2025, we were on a path to a better future for working people and the planet, but Trump has put a torch to it,” said BlueGreen Alliance Executive Director Jason Walsh. “Serious damage has been done, but It’s not too late to start fixing what Trump and the GOP Congress have tried to destroy. We need leadership in Washington, D.C. who will focus on creating good-paying jobs generating clean energy and building the supply chains we need for America to achieve widespread prosperity, security, and equity.” 

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