Minn. union leader: Workers grateful for stimulus

A Minnesota union official says union workers are grateful for the $787 billion economic stimulus legislation Congress passed Friday.

Glen Johnson is the business manager for the International Union of Operating Engineers Local 49. It represents more than 13,000 workers in Minnesota, North Dakota and South Dakota.

He says passage is "a major victory for the nation's working people."

Johnson says investment in the nation's infrastructure will create work for men and women in the construction industry. The union estimates the first burst of spending will create 12,000 construction jobs in Minnesota by late spring and thousands more by fall.

The union represents workers employed in highway and building construction, equipment repair and welding shops and related businesses.