Unionized workers form alliance with rich tech giants on AI data centers, pushing back on local opposition and redrawing political lines

Building trades unions — long fashioned as the voice of the American worker — are now intertwined with the richest companies in the world as they create America’s artificial intelligence economy. Unionized workers are employed on a huge number of massive data center projects and scrambling to recruit new apprentices to feed the explosive demand. They’ve also become an ally of tech giants and tech-friendly government officials, echoing the talking point that the United States is in a critical national security race with China for AI superiority. Unions are a visible force in helping counter fierce opposition in communities and hostile legislation in Congress and legislatures, often aligning with traditional Republican pro-business constituencies and forcing Democrats to choose between them and progressives who want to take a harder line. Unions have aggressively answered complaints about data centers in ways that executives at tech giants and the development firms rarely do, unafraid to bluntly confront concerns about energy and water shortages, rising electric and water bills, or noise and quality-of-life objections. “When people say, you know, ‘data centers are the root of all evil,’ we’re just saying, ‘look, they do create a hell of a lot of construction jobs, which we live and work in your communities,’” said Rob Bair, president of the Pennsylvania Building and Construction Trades Council. Instead of “being just a blunt ‘no,’” Bair said, communities should figure out what they need and ask the tech companies for it — such as improvements to the project’s plans or millions of dollars for local schools. “If you don’t ask, you’re never gonna get,” he said. Data centers a boon for unions With data center construction accelerating, unions are expanding training centers and seeing their ranks grow faster than many union leaders have ever seen. Unions in a number of states are reporting skyrocketing man hours, apprentice classes doubling in