Ironworkers are famous for building the structures that define America, including the Golden Gate Bridge and the St. Louis Arch. But lately the members of Ironworkers Local 340, based in Battle Creek, Mich., have been busy erecting some new landmarks: Towering wind turbines and vast solar panels that are making the state a leader in clean energy.

Over the last few years, times have been tough in the construction industry. Clean energy businesses have helped supply new kinds of jobs for union workers. Since 2012, union officials have reported employment levels that are on the upswing, and the expansion of wind energy in particular has been a boon for Michigan’s ironworkers. Local 340’s members have travelled to job sites in 31 counties across the state.

One prominent example is a large wind turbine project, which the union estimated employed between 30 and 40 members before its completion in 2012. At the Lake Winds Energy Park, located in Mason County along the eastern shore of Lake Michigan, 56 wind turbines generate 100 megawatts of renewable electricity. Installing the turbines provided months of work for members of Local 340.

Ironworkers have historically been seen as daredevils of the construction industry — particularly for working at incredible heights building skyscrapers — and extensive training is needed to ensure their safety. It’s not surprising that those with such high-wire skills are also the ideal workers to erect wind turbines, which often operate hundreds of feet above the ground.

“The pieces are very heavy,” explained Local 340’s former business manager, Hugh Coward. “It takes big cranes to erect them, and people who can climb and have the training and knowledge to do the work safely.”

As the union’s business manager, Coward made sure that projects were completed on time and on budget, while looking out for the interests of the union members employed by contractors. What he enjoyed most about his work, he said, was putting people to work in good-paying jobs with pensions and health care benefits.

“When you talk about jobs for the future, a lot of people look at construction jobs as temporary jobs,” Coward said. “They don’t think about the fact that the construction industry is a good industry to work in.”

“And by the way,” he added, “the construction industry can’t be outsourced.”

In addition to the Lake Winds Energy Park, Local 340 members are involved in work on an LG advanced battery facility in Holland, Mich., designed to manufacture batteries for electric vehicles. (The plant recently celebrated its first shipment of units for the Chevrolet Volt.) They are also working on a math and science center in Battle Creek, where they are building the facility, reinforcing concrete foundations and footings, and installing equipment.

“We build those turbines… and they start running and producing power,” Coward said. “Those are good jobs for [union] members and other people in the construction trades.”

The BlueGreen Alliance, a grantee of the Surdna Foundation, unites 14 of our country’s largest unions and environmental organizations.