Micron Clears Path for Union in $6 Billion Deal With White House

A union may be coming to one of the world’s largest chip manufacturers after Micron Technology, Inc. agreed to hold labor peace talks with union leaders under a $6.1 billion funding deal with the Biden administration.

Micron agreed not to interfere with workers’ right to organize while it discusses a broader neutrality agreement with the Communications Workers of America as a condition of receiving CHIPS and Science Act funding, the White House said Thursday. It’s the latest example of some tech companies softening their stance on unions, since Microsoft Corp. last year reached a peace agreement with Activision Blizzard, Inc.

“We are looking forward to sitting down with Micron’s management to negotiate a labor peace agreement that fulfills the promise of this funding to create good jobs in this critical sector of our economy,” Carl Kennebrew, president of the industrial division of CWA, said in a statement.

Micron also agreed to two new project labor agreements for the construction of new plants in Idaho and New York state, the White House said. Such agreements insure that workers are paid prevailing wages for a specific area and often give preference to union labor.

In addition, the company agreed to use government-registered apprenticeships to train workers for new jobs, and will partner with the American Federation of Teachers to create a curriculum.

The Washington-Baltimore News Guild, which is affiliated with the CWA, represents employees of Bloomberg Law.