Brothers and Sisters,
In his first State of the Union address, President Biden said, “The American Jobs Plan will put engineers and construction workers to work building more energy efficient buildings and homes, Electrical workers – IBEW members – installing 500,000 charging stations along our highways.”
The money to do this work was recently approved by Congress. The question is: How do we make sure this work is done by union electricians. The answer is EVITP.
The Electrical Vehicle Infrastructure Training Program is a class developed by the IBEW and NECA to certify workers to install electric vehicle charging stations. Now, you’re probably asking yourself, “Why do I need to take a class to install a 240 volt dryer plug in someone’s garage?” Truly, any IBEW journeyman should already have the skills and knowledge to do this work.
This certification is important because the federal contracts that come with this infrastructure money are going to require the work to be done by workers who have this certification. Our ready access to this certification will give us and our contractors a leg up in getting this work, allowing us to control this rapidly expanding market.
This plan only works if we, as members, buy into it. At our August meeting, we agreed to make 40 spots available for journeymen and CE 10s (5th year apprentices will get this training as a part of their curriculum). It’s a self-paced, online class. The only required classroom time is the certification test. I urge all of you to take advantage of this opportunity. Contact Alfredo Alanis at [email protected] to register.
In other news, starting September 1, members will be able to set up automatic monthly dues payments through our website. Go to our online payment page to get this service going.
Also, effective September 1, the hours for journeyman roll-call will be moved back to 8 am.
Be safe and thank you for all you do.
In Solidarity, Ben Brenneman, Card No. 7698756
