Some US electricians are refusing data center jobs over AI ethics and

An increasing number of American electricians are starting to question whether their labor makes them complicit in the corporate greed and environmental damage associated with AI data centers. In online communities like r/electricians, which attracts 500,000 monthly visitors, workers are actively debating the ethics of powering the AI revolution.

For some union members, the answer is a firm refusal. An electrician named Ryan has avoided data center jobs, comparing the buildout to private prisons. He believes that four or five AI companies are simply exchanging money with each other in a circle, raising fears of a speculative tech bubble.

Despite the pushback, tech giants are moving aggressively to train workers. Google has committed $50 million to help train people in skilled trades, and Meta recently launched a skilled trade academy. Some workers see data centers as a rare path to management, though it comes at a social cost—one Midwest manager admits he hides his profession on dates due to immediate criticism.