[runnerup]

It would be interesting to see a breakdown of heavy industry vs. commercial vs. residential for tradespeople. Despite that I've worked extensively in manufacturing facilities for oil and gas / chemicals industries throughout the southern US, most of the electricians I know personally work in residential and commercial so I'm not sure they care where those new factories are being installed, as they won't be taking those contracts. All the ironworkers I know personally work on government contracts and commercial skyscrapers. At the same time, 100% of the union pipefitters and welders I know work in chemical plants.

I follow quite a few of the subreddits for trades (r/trades, r/electricians, etc) and I can say that GP's comment rings true there. But I work primarily in TX/Louisiana/Mississippi, and the sentiment among tradespeople here is highly variable. There's a lot keeping people where their families and friends are, and there's a great amount of distrust for any information which leads to a decision they don't want to make.

Generally in TX I've had better experiences in the Union facilities, but in Louisiana I've had better experiences in the non-union facilities. I haven't interacted with union labor at all in Mississippi.