Los Angeles, Ca. (9/16/2019) – BYD (Build Your Dreams) announced Monday it has signed a landmark agreement committing to union participation in the construction of the company’s SkyRail factory in Lancaster.
Under the terms of its historic Community Workforce Agreement with Los Angeles/Orange Counties Building and Construction Trades Council, hundreds of union workers affiliated with various trades will be hired for the construction of the SkyRail/SkyShuttle manufacturing facility in Lancaster, when that facility is built.
“We are committed to our community and to a growing and well-trained union workforce,” said Stella Li, President of BYD North America. “This project, when begun, will result as many as 1,000 new jobs for Lancaster and Los Angeles County.”
Ron Miller, Council Executive Secretary for the Trades Council praised BYD for its union alliance.
“BYD is proving through this agreement that they support a union workforce, with fair wages, family benefits and worksite representation,” Miller said. “Working union makes sense for business and BYD is setting an example for private-sector employers. We welcome BYD as a union partner.”
BYD purchased more than 150 acres of pristine land near its existing Coach & Bus factory for a SkyRail/SkyShuttle manufacturing facility. When complete, the plant is expected to add hundreds of employees to BYD’s already robust union workforce.
The pact also strengthens BYD’s commitment to Lancaster and to the hiring of disadvantaged and underserved populations. As part of the agreement, Lancaster residents will get first priority in hiring, then residents of the greater Antelope Valley, and then residents of disadvantaged areas within greater Los Angeles County.
The agreement dovetails BYD’s Community Benefits Agreement with Jobs to Move America. Under the CBA, BYD recruits and hires workers from populations facing significant barriers to employment, such as veterans and returning citizens. In addition, populations that have historically been excluded from the manufacturing industry, such as women and African Americans will be also be recruited and placed.
“This agreement strengthens high-quality employment in the Antelope Valley, which is underserved with careers for those who do not go to college,” Miller said. “Our work with BYD will bring more local residents into our apprenticeship system, which is the second-largest source of training in the US after the military.”
The Community Benefits Agreement was created in 2017 through talks with Jobs to Move America and SMART Local 105.
About the Trades Council
The Los Angeles/Orange Counties Building and Construction Trades Council is represents skilled union construction workers in 14 Trades, with 140,000 members in 48 affiliated local unions and district councils.
The Official Sponsor of Mother Nature™, BYD, which stands for Build Your Dreams, is the world’s leading electric vehicle company with proven innovative technology for cars, buses, trucks, forklifts, and rail systems – like SkyRail. BYD is dedicated to creating a truly zero-emission ecosystem offering technology for solar electricity generation, energy storage to save that electricity, and battery electric vehicles powered by that clean energy. BYD has 220,000 employees across the globe, including nearly 1,000 in North America. For more information, please visit www.BYD.com.
