Labor Meets Science Policy: NSF And AFL-CIO Announce Partnership
Article/Op-Ed in Forbes
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Oct. 10, 2024
Shalin Jyotishi wrote an article in Forbes about a new partnership between the National Science Foundation (NSF) and the AFL-CIO to integrate labor with science policy. The collaboration aims to strengthen the U.S. workforce by aligning scientific innovation with worker needs and ensuring labor voices are included in policy development.
The AFL-CIO, the largest federation of labor unions in the United States, has announced its first partnership with the U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF), an independent federal research and STEM education funding agency.
Over the next five years, AFL-CIO's Technology Institute will collaborate with NSF to connect scientific researchers with frontline workers and unions to better understand their needs around emerging technologies–particularly the areas emphasized in the CHIPS & Science Act, such as AI, quantum computing, and semiconductors.
The memorandum of understanding is the first of its kind. It could serve as a model for how unions could partner with other federal science funding agencies, such as the U.S. National Institutes of Health, the U.S. Energy Department, or the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) around R&D, workforce development, and technology development.