The White House said union workers at the shipyard are building a new offshore wind vessel called the Acadia, which will be used to help build offshore wind farms. While he's here, the president will attend a steel-cutting ceremony for the Acadia.
Tensions are rising between unions and companies about a rapidly evolving economy in which artificial intelligence, clean energy and e-commerce are rewriting some of the basic rules of work. Biden is trying to allay those concerns by saying unions should be part of that future. But the Democratic president also knows from past experience that a strike could harm his reelection chances.
In Philadelphia on Thursday, Biden will drill down on this point at a steel-cutting ceremony for the Acadia, a vessel needed to build offshore wind farms that his administration says could support hundreds of new union jobs. The United Auto Workers are starting contract talks, and members say they expect a possible strike. They want to ensure there are union protections at new battery plants for electric vehicles. The union contract expires before midnight on Sept. 14.
When asked if an autoworker or Teamsters strike could similarly threaten growth, Biden administration officials declined to speculate and said only that the president believes in the right of collective bargaining for workers.