China Undercuts U.S. Paper Jobs

July 12, 2010

The U.S. paper sector is facing difficult times. In the last decade, approximately 200,000 jobs were lost. That represents about a third of the total jobs. Those remaining face an increasingly uncertain future if current trends continue. With over 100,000 Steelworkers employed in this sector, it is our members and the communities in which they live that are feeling the impact. In many cases, our Union has successfully argued that China's violations of international trade laws have undermined many of our industries, including those in paper. A newlyreleased
report supports our argument.

The report, No Paper Tiger: Subsidies to China's Paper Industry from 2002-09, shows the following:

&bull The Chinese government is providing massive subsidies to its paper industry, including $33 billion in 2002-2009 alone. This has fueled their rapid rise in paper
production, tripling output since 2000.

&bull When an industry is subsidized in this way, the product falsely appears lowerpriced.

&bull China makes much more than they need, exporting the rest.

&bull When cheap, illegally subsidized product reaches the U.S. market, our Americanmanufactured paper companies struggle to remain competitive, plants close, jobs disappear and families and communities suffer.

&bull And, these illegal subsidies violate our international trade rules.

Policy makers must intervene now to preserve our remaining domestic paper sector jobs. That's why Rapid Response is currently taking this report to Congressional offices and requesting action.

It's Time to Take Action for Jobs

April 21, 2010

Our country desperately needs to secure and create good-paying jobs. The emerging clean energy economy has provided us with tremendous opportunity to do just that. If
we don't push and take advantage of this opportunity that provides particular promise for manufacturing, the opportunity will pass us by as other nations create these jobs.
This is our chance to secure and rebuild domestic industries through new clean energy jobs!
Action Instructions:
1 – Write three handwritten, personalized notes – one to each of
your Senators and one to your Representative. Please see the
sample note on the following page.
2 – Make sure to include your home address to show that you are a constituent.
3 – Local Rapid Response Coordinators should collect all
completed notes and mail them to the nearest Sub-District office.
We will be doing deliveries and mailing them periodically to
increase the impact.
If you have questions or need an address, contact your District Rapid Response Coordinator. You can also call us toll-free at 866- 851-9631 to be connected with your Coordinator.
USW Rapid Response 􀁺 (412) 562-2291 􀁺 http://www.uswrr.org

Sample Note

Dear Senator or Representative _________:

Please support efforts to secure current jobs and create new green jobs in the United States as part
of a clean energy economy.
[Add in any additional points or tell how this could benefit you (see below).]
Sincerely,
Your Name
Your Address

Additional Points (Note: The more personalized your note, the more powerful it is.)
&bull We must have a strong manufacturing base to have a strong country. Investing in green jobs gives us
the chance to secure and rebuild domestic industries that provide quality, good-paying jobs.
&bull When the manufacturing, mining and other work for the emerging clean energy economy is done
domestically, and our industries are given the support they need to become more efficient, we
secure our jobs. We also strengthen the tax base, ensuring funding for the public sector jobs that
build strong communities.
&bull If we fail to make the investment in green jobs, other countries will. Our economic strength
depends on taking advantage of this opportunity. We can't lose out on these jobs.
&bull We have to ensure that we're building our domestic industries in the clean energy economy.
Absolutely no taxpayer dollars should be used to fund job creation in other countries.
&bull Our country is desperately in need of quality jobs. We need over 11 million just to get back to prerecession
levels. We have to focus on creating jobs here. And, we can do that by investing in
green jobs.
Are you already working in a green job?
You might be if the job you do or the products you make or mine:
&bull Encourage use of renewable energy (ex: iron ore is mined for the steel that goes into a wind
turbine, a biomass by-product from paper production is used as fuel, etc.),
&bull Focus on increasing efficiency (ex: energy-efficient windows, water-saving faucets, filters that
remove harmful substances, etc.), or
&bull Contribute to using our resources wisely (ex: reusing manufacturing waste, incorporating lesstoxic
substances in production, using recycled component in products, etc.).

Make sure to tell your Senators and Representative your story and why supporting jobs in a
clean energy economy is important to you!

Are We Going to Invest in Green Jobs?

April 19, 2010

Unless the United States makes a strong commitment to keeping
green jobs here, those jobs will certainly go elsewhere. Other nations are making the investment.

Consider China's efforts:
They were the world's largest maker of wind turbines in 2009.
The largest-ever wind turbine manufacturing facility was recently built in China.
They are the world's largest manufacturer of solar panels.
They report having 1.12 million people employed in the renewable energy sector in 2008 and that they are adding 100,000 jobs a year.
In 2009, China dedicated $440 billion in government funding solely to clean energy.

Last week Rapid Response shared information on a few of the many Steelworkers whose jobs are part of the emerging clean energy economy. We stressed the fact that when the
manufacturing, mining and other work is done domestically, and our industries are given the support they need to become more efficient, we secure our jobs, and in turn our tax base.
There is also tremendous potential for green job creation in the United States if we are willing to make the investment.
We know that China violates trade agreements and manipulates their currency to support their own manufacturers and jobs. It's part of the reason that we've lost 2.4 million jobs –
impacting every state – due to our trade deficit with China since 2001. The United States cannot afford to give up any more jobs. We need to make the commitment to domestic
manufacturing through securing and creating jobs in a clean energy economy – or someone else will!

Get ready to take action later this week!