It may progress in fits and starts, but few can deny that the EV revolution—the electric vehicle revolution—has begun. After a few aborted attempts in the 1990s, the EV revolution began slowly around 2010 with the emergence of Tesla Motors. Since then, many traditional automakers, who produced gas—and diesel-powered vehicles, have added electric options to their lineups. In the late 1990s, hybrid cars began combining gas-powered engines with electric motors to improve their gas mileage, starting with the iconic Toyota Prius.
The Chevy Volt and Nissan LEAF quickly rose to challenge Tesla’s lock on the all-electric market in the early 2010s, and other traditional automakers followed suit. As the market for EVs has drastically expanded, so has the number of available jobs in the EV industry, both in research and development (R&D) and in production. There will also be significant job opportunities in creating new charging infrastructure for EVs. One of the major limits on the EV revolution has been the ability of drivers to charge their vehicles while traveling; some cities and towns lack easy access to high-speed “superchargers” that can recharge EVs quickly.
America Has The Chance to Become Major EV Exporter
The EV revolution gives America an opportunity to revitalize itself as a major vehicle exporter. Currently, challenges are slowing EV investment among major automakers like Ford and General Motors (GM). Maintaining EV investment is important as this new industry is ripe for market leadership, and the U.S. has a chance to become a market leader. Assisting in this market growth is Toyota, which is investing $1.4 billion in expanding electric vehicle production in the United States.
The expansion is anticipated to add up to 340 well-paying jobs and will allow Toyota to access tax credits available under the 2022 Inflation Reduction Act (IRA). These tax credits require producers to use components mostly made in the United States. Shifting more of its EV component production to the U.S. will help Toyota make the United States an EV innovation leader. As a major exporter of vehicles, the U.S. could become an EV production hub from where even foreign automakers build and export vehicles to third countries.
Foreign Automakers Generate Lots of Domestic Jobs
The expansion of Toyota’s production is good news for the labor market by providing new jobs and driving up wages overall. Foreign automakers employ over 150,000 American workers in factories and some 500,000 at car dealerships. Therefore, it is important to make sure that foreign automakers operating within the U.S. have fair and equitable access to government tax credits and subsidies for providing good jobs to American workers. Toyota taking advantage of IRA subsidies for its new EV production will benefit our economy and our labor market. These subsidies require Toyota to use EV batteries produced domestically, benefiting those companies, instead of importing the batteries from other countries, such as China.
The more EVs that are made in the U.S. by either domestic or foreign automakers, the less reliant we will be on imported EVs and their parts. Being cut off from EV components could be harmful to the economy and transportation infrastructure if our nation suffers a loss of international trade.
