A group of Vermont labor leaders is asking the Legislature to allow the Vermont Yankee nuclear plant to remain open for 20 years past the expiration of its current license in 2012.
Leaders of 15 construction unions told a news conference Wednesday that more than 600 people are employed at the Vernon nuclear plant and pay taxes to the state of Vermont.
Lawmakers are being asked to vote this year on whether Vermont Yankee should get an extension on its license, currently set to expire in two years.
George Clain, president of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 300, says Vermont Yankee’s jobs pay an average of $81,000 a year.