Business

OP-ED: Securing the Opportunities of American Energy

NNPA NEWSWIRE — The natural gas and oil industry supports the jobs of more than 10 million American workers, and reports project an additional 1.9 million job opportunities in America’s natural gas and oil and petrochemicals industries by 2035 – nearly 40 percent of which will be held by African American and Hispanic workers.

Published

6 years ago

January 20, 2019

Oakland Post

By Elia Quintana, Director of Stakeholder Relations, American Petroleum Institute

15 or 20 years ago, there were very few people who could have imagined that the U.S. would again lead the world in the production of natural gas and oil. And even fewer who would have thought that we could reduce carbon emissions faster than any other nation. Today, we are doing both.

The natural gas and oil industry supports the jobs of more than 10 million American workers, and reports project an additional 1.9 million job opportunities in America’s natural gas and oil and petrochemicals industries by 2035 – nearly 40 percent of which will be held by African American and Hispanic workers. The natural gas and oil industry leads all other sectors – including utilities, tech and health care – in compensation for U.S. workers, because as an industry, we take pride in providing well-paying careers and opportunities for individuals and families, offering support for communities and driving local and national economies.

The American energy revolution is changing life for the better. Stable, affordable energy brings economic stability and cleaner air. It is reviving American manufacturing, and restoring jobs we used to hear were gone forever. Advanced technologies, best practices and industry standards allow the natural gas and oil industry to safely and responsibly explore and develop both onshore and offshore, and this development means that the industry can continue leading the way in bringing large economic benefits – including investments and jobs – to communities across the country, as well as affordable and reliable energy.

These benefits are tangible – like newly paved roads, upgraded school buildings and better funded land and water conservation projects. Just last month, onshore lease sales in New Mexico resulted in nearly $500 million in revenue awarded to the state from oil and natural gas production on federal lands. Offshore lease sales are just as beneficial as onshore ones and could bring the same types of much-needed benefits to many states along the Atlantic coast and Eastern Gulf of Mexico. Communities in states from Virginia to Florida could see billions in state revenues, improved infrastructure and thousands of new jobs.

Affordable domestic energy also generates cost savings – savings that can be invested in businesses and jobs. By 2040, natural gas alone will save consumers across the country an estimated $100 billion, or $655 per household, from the increased use of the abundant, affordable fuel throughout our economy – from manufacturing to electricity generation.

Over the course of the past decade, the nation’s natural gas and oil industry has accomplished what many thought impossible. Our industry employed advanced technology and the best of the American entrepreneurial spirit to move the nation from energy scarcity to energy abundance. We have played a leading role in reducing energy costs for American families and businesses, spurred a manufacturing revival and strengthened the nation’s energy security – while leading the world in environmental progress. With the right policies, U.S. energy development can continue to fuel the economy – and our communities – for decades to come.

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Oakland Post: Week of May 7 – 13, 2025

The printed Weekly Edition of the Oakland Post: Week of May 7 – 13, 2025

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4 days ago

May 9, 2025

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Oakland Post: Week of April 30 – May 6, 2025

The printed Weekly Edition of the Oakland Post: Week of April 30 – May 6, 2025

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1 week ago

May 4, 2025

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California Rideshare Drivers and Supporters Step Up Push to Unionize

Today in California, over 600,000 rideshare drivers want the ability to form or join unions for the sole purpose of collective bargaining or other mutual aid and protection. It’s a right, and recently at the State Capitol, a large number of people, including some rideshare drivers and others working in the gig economy, reaffirmed that they want to exercise it.

Published

2 weeks ago

April 28, 2025

Oakland Post

Shutterstock

By Antonio‌ ‌Ray‌ ‌Harvey‌
California‌ ‌Black‌ ‌Media‌

On July 5, 1935, President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed into federal law the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA). Also known as the “Wagner Act,” the law paved the way for employees to have “the right to self-organization, to form, join, or assist labor organizations,” and “to bargain collectively through representatives of their own choosing, according to the legislation’s language.

On April 8, the rideshare drivers held a rally with lawmakers to garner support for Assembly Bill (AB) 1340, the “Transportation Network Company Drivers (TNC) Labor Relations Act.”

Authored by Assemblymembers Buffy Wicks (D-Oakland) and Marc Berman (D-Menlo Park), AB 1340 would allow drivers to create a union and negotiate contracts with industry leaders like Uber and Lyft.

“All work has dignity, and every worker deserves a voice — especially in these uncertain times,” Wicks said at the rally. “AB 1340 empowers drivers with the choice to join a union and negotiate for better wages, benefits, and protections. When workers stand together, they are one of the most powerful forces for justice in California.”

Wicks and Berman were joined by three members of the California Legislative Black Caucus (CLBC): Assemblymembers Tina McKinnor (D-Inglewood), Sade Elhawary (D-Los Angeles), and Isaac Bryan (D-Ladera Heights).

Yvonne Wheeler, president of the Los Angeles County Federation of Labor; April Verrett, President of Service Employees International Union (SEIU); Tia Orr, Executive Director of SEIU; and a host of others participated in the demonstration on the grounds of the state capitol.

“This is not a gig. This is your life. This is your job,” Bryan said at the rally. “When we organize and fight for our collective needs, it pulls from the people who have so much that they don’t know what to do with it and puts it in the hands of people who are struggling every single day.”

Existing law, the “Protect App-Based Drivers and Services Act,” created by Proposition (Prop) 22, a ballot initiative, categorizes app-based drivers for companies such as Uber and Lyft as independent contractors.

Prop 22 was approved by voters in the November 2020 statewide general election. Since then, Prop 22 has been in court facing challenges from groups trying to overturn it.

However, last July, Prop 22 was upheld by the California Supreme Court last July.

In a 2024, statement after the ruling, Lyft stated that 80% of the rideshare drivers they surveyed acknowledged that Prop 22 “was good for them” and “median hourly earnings of drivers on the Lyft platform in California were 22% higher in 2023 than in 2019.”

Wicks and Berman crafted AB 1340 to circumvent Prop 22.

“With AB 1340, we are putting power in the hands of hundreds of thousands of workers to raise the bar in their industry and create a model for an equitable and innovative partnership in the tech sector,” Berman said.