Green jobs phony

In 2009, President Obama promised 5 million green jobs. A Sept. 22 House Committee on Oversight report found that green jobs are only a “political construct” without any special economic worth, succeeding only in strengthening Democratic factions, political, environmental and labor alliances such as the Sierra Club, American Federation of State County and Municipal Employees, Greenpeace, National Resources Defense Council, International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, AFL-CIO and Teamsters, who are rewarded and profit under the pretense of green energy through subsidized work.

The Labor Department’s inspector general report found that $162.8 million spent out of a $500 million stimulus grant has trained 52,762 green workers. Yet only 8,035 found jobs, and 1,336 remained employed after six months.

The House Committee report says the green jobs result only from relabeling by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Such deception permits policy makers, investors and decision-makers to deceive the American people into believing there is some value in green jobs.

The relabeling means that bus drivers, EPA enforcement personnel, environmental professors and lobbyists who secure green energy loans become green employees. The committee puts the cost of creating each green job, excluding pay and benefits, at $121,800.

David Boleneus

Spokane