Nuclear energy is getting a glow-up. Rising demand for electricity is prompting power plants to reopen while new technologies step into the limelight.
The big picture: The Department of Energy has awarded a five-year, $19 million training grant to a consortium of academics, government, utilities, and the IBEW, to create a career pipeline for a new generation of workers in the nuclear energy industry for good jobs and steady work. The grant will allow the consortium to develop new curriculum, including college-level nuclear courses.
“The IBEW being involved at the outset is important because we can ensure real pathways to jobs, high-quality union training, and a curriculum focused on the work we do,” said Shane Bauman, Fourth District international representative and former business manager of Toledo, Ohio, Local 245, which represents workers at the Davis-Besse nuclear plant.
Between the lines: Several other IBEW members and organizations worked with the University of Toledo and U.S. Rep. Marcy Kaptur of Ohio to win funding for the Great Lakes Partnership to Enhance the Nuclear Workforce that will:
- Develop industry-recognized credentials for nuclear plant jobs in maintenance, power delivery, operations, reactor support, and other functions necessary to operate and maintain nuclear facilities, including safety, chemistry, and quality control
- Establish training for skilled trades work in newer advanced nuclear plants and small modular reactors
- Promote the nuclear industry to high school students and workers transitioning out of fossil fuel plants
Other organizations in the partnership include the University of Michigan, Electric Power Research Institute, Nuclear Energy Institute, Vistra, DTE and other educational institutions and utilities.
Why it matters: The grant, along with similar efforts across the country, is a critical step toward the additional 375,000 trained workers the Department of Energy estimates the nuclear industry will need by 2050.
Today, IBEW’s nuclear plant workers are mostly trained on plant sites, where they participate in extensive facility-specific apprenticeships and earn necessary certifications, said Matt Warren, Utility Department international representative.
“It used to be two separate tracks. Either you choose college or the trades. Hopefully this is a mix of the two,” Bauman said.
Zoom in: The IBEW represents over 15,000 members at a majority of nuclear plants in the United States. These members are trained to the highest level of skill, safety, and professionalism in outage work, maintenance, upgrades, construction, and future nuclear development.
Photo Caption: The Tennessee Valley Authority plans to build a small nuclear reactor near Oak Ridge, Tenn. Photo credit: GE Vernova