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Employees at New York City solar power company Bright Power were inspired by Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and her Green New Deal to form a union in April.
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Before their first contract negotiation was complete this month, they were all terminated as the company decided to go back to their old model of using subcontractors.
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Motherboard, a Vice division, published an article painting company management as evil and defending the workers whose actions brought about the demise of their own jobs.
Organized labor has been making a comeback in recent years. After being thoroughly proven to be a model that is detrimental to both employees and management while benefiting unions and union bosses themselves, Democrats have sparked renewed interest in the antiquated labor system. But just as increased minimum wage tends to reduce overall pay, hours, and availability of employment, so too do labor unions tend to yield less benefits than the hassle and costs associated with them.
Employees at Bright Power sought to form the first solar energy union in New York. They accomplished their goal in April with 75% of their employees voting in favor. But after months of negotiations to hammer down their first contract, which would have included a $56/hour wage, 401K, pension, and other benefits, ownership decided to change back to their old business model of using subcontractors.
The workers said they were inspired by Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez’s Green New Deal which uses climate change as a backdrop to promote radically progressive economic ideas that boost government intervention across the board while making labor unions the dominant private force in the overall economy. But the inspiration proved to be fatal to their employment as Bright Power reversed course. The company claims it was a market- and logistics-based decision that had nothing to do with the ongoing labor negotiations.
“This decision in no way is related to the BPIC workers’ vote to unionize. We respect all of our employees and their rights,” Bright Power spokesperson Betsey Harbison said.
The company’s margins are not as high as other related industries, according to the company. This is why they are reworking their entire business model that will likely include maintenance over installation, though the company has not elaborated on their future plans. They went to using full-time employees four years ago. Prior to that, they utilized the subcontractor model they intend to use going forward.
As Matt Palumbo at Bongino.com noted, Ocasio-Cortez isn’t happy about the company’s actions.
Raw New Deal: Workers Fired After Following AOC’s Advice
In response to learning the consequences of per policies, AOC said that Bright Power must be “held accountable.”
Unfortunately for AOC, they already were accountable to the laws of economics.
Put metaphorically; AOC swung a bat at businessmen – and she’s angry that they ducked.
Organized labor and progressive energy companies may sound like a perfect match, but as Bright Power has demonstrated, combining leftist concepts can end up doubling the pain. This is the Green New Deal in microcosm.
We are currently forming the American Conservative Movement. If you are interested in learning more, we will be sending out information in a few weeks.
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