Illinois Economic Policy Institute

I thought it was really interesting.

It comes as no surprise to me because I think we've talked with guests like Frank Manzo from the Illinois Economic Policy Institute who give you the numbers to show that if unions were twice as present in the workforce, the average gains for American workers would be like $7,500 or $10,000 extra per year.

The more unions there are, whether you're in one or not, the better workers do.

And it's not an argument that, you know, I'm just saying this.

Those findings are from a new study, as Illinois Public Radio's Mawa Iqbal reports.

A study from the University of Illinois and the Illinois Economic Policy Institute found new data centers in the next decade could produce 121,000 mostly temporary jobs and yield about $300 million in annual property taxes.

But Frank Manzo, an economist at the institute, says more data centers could cause average electricity bills to jump $12 per month, which Manzo says can be mitigated.

Our recommendations are built around the notion of responsible development.

But many are skeptical, skeptical about the, uh, touted bene- benefits and will, uh, that they will live up to the promises or outweigh the environmental and energy burdens.

The study by the Illinois Economic Policy Institute projects that fifty-seven billion dollars worth of new data center investments through 2035 will create one hundred twenty-one thousand jobs.

Most of those would be temporary construction jobs and other jobs throughout the economy, with just twenty-eight hundred of them being direct permanent positions.

After lawmakers failed to pass data center regulations in the spring session, Governor J.B. Pritzker paused the state's data center tax incentive program, a comprehensive study, saying a comprehensive study was needed to help guide policymakers on how to address residents' concerns, according to Frank Manzo, an economist at ILEPI, a, a labor-ba- uh, backed research organization that promotes thoughtful economic growth for businesses and working families.

If this were completely private money, it would be a different story, Anthony Elmo, director of Good Jobs First, said.

These taxpayer dollars need to actually incentivize good long-term jobs, and they're not.

Illinois Economic Policy Institute researchers said many of the jobs created by the data center projects pay well, including six-figure construction jobs.

Thirteen projects in twenty twenty and twenty twenty-one created eight thousand construction jobs with wages over one hundred thousand dollars, according to the report.

It also says those same data centers would add an average of $12 to Illinois' monthly bills.

Frank Manzo with the Illinois Economic Policy Institute is here to talk about the report and what its forecast means for the state.

Frank, thank you so much for being here.

Thank you for having me this evening.

How do you speak to those who are calling so much of what data centers now are known for in some places and theorized to bring in other places, how they're calling that out?

Well, yeah, certainly public concern about data center impacts have, that concern has intensified.

It's the reason that the project for middle class renewal at the University of Illinois and we at Aleppi jointly conducted this report.

And yeah, nine in 10 Illinois residents agree that data centers should bring their own clean energy and use cooling systems that don't drain water supplies.

Meanwhile, hotel workers in Chicago ready to go on strike.

And today on the show, the Animation Guild and the Illinois Economic Policy Institute.

Welcome to the Wednesday, September 30th edition of America's Workforce, where we're available on at least five platforms, including YouTube, Apple Podcasts, iHeartRadio, Spotify, and Pandora.

We have a total of three guests joining us on the show today.

In nearly two decades, going back to 2008, the membership surge occurred everywhere, but was three times larger in states that protect collective bargaining rights than those with so-called right-to-work laws.

Should not be a surprise to you.

That website, by the way, and this whole survey is posted there, ILEPI.org, the Illinois Economic Policy Institute.

Now, a brief look into the world of labor.