Electrical Union Opposes Smart Meters - Fire Risks May 12, 2013 As MLGW campaigns for the conversion to smart meters across the Mid-South, local union leaders are calling the units fire hazards. Bill Hawkins of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers union says MLGW's proposed smart meter expansion is a bad idea. "We feel the customers need to know what MLGW is about to do to them," Hawkins said. "A smart meter burned up the side of a customer's house. MLGW blamed the customer's wiring." Read more and see video: http://www.wmctv.com/story/22229806/unions-oppose-mlgws-smart-meter-expansion.