Workers Should be Focus of Post-COVID Climate Policy 'Reset', Unions Say

Phoebe Cooke headshot - credit Laura King Photography
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Trade unions are calling for the government to put regional voices at the heart of its climate strategy โ€“ or risk catastrophic consequences.

Meeting the UKโ€™s 2050 net-zero target requires a โ€œreset of the way we live and workโ€, a report by the Trades Union Congress (TUC) published today states. 

โ€œGet it right and we can develop new, innovative industrial sectors providing great new jobs,โ€ it reads. โ€œGet it wrong and those working in fossil fuel sectors of the economy will lose their jobs and livelihoods, with only low skill, low value jobs to replace them.โ€


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Regional focus

The report uses case studies from five regions known for their manufacturing expertise โ€“ the North East, North West, Midlands, Yorkshire and The Humber as well as Wales โ€“ and makes the case for a transition that focuses on both regions and nations within the UK.

Union members are calling for long-term investment into industries relevant to their regions, such as carbon capture and storage (CCS) in Yorkshire and The Humber, nuclear energy in the North West, and electric car batteries in the Midlands. 

In concrete terms, the TUC is demanding specific investment in individual areas, an integrated skills policy, a UK-wide โ€œintegrated and balanced energy policyโ€ and the formation of regional panels with union representatives to take on the dual challenge of COVID-19 and an ongoing climate emergency.

TUC General Secretary, Frances Oโ€™Grady, says a regeneration of former and emerging powerhouses is crucial, recalling how workers were simply โ€œdumped on the doleโ€ during the last major industrial upheaval of the 1980s.

โ€œNational action is vital, but regions need to cut their own path to net zero too,โ€ she said in a statement.

โ€œEach region has its own character, with its own industry, culture and geography. We need local knowledge and expertise to play to an areaโ€™s strengths and address its needs.โ€

The report highlights the significant challenges posed by a fast-changing industry, from the phase-out of new petrol and diesel cars by 2035, to the dwindling of jobs that have often accompanied technological advances.

2050 or earlier?

Unions have long called for a โ€œjust transitionโ€ in the UK. A 2008 pamphlet on a A Green and Fair Future urged the government to take a โ€œmore proactive approachโ€ to share the costs and benefits of new environmental measures.

Todayโ€™s report suggests that the UK may meet the net-zero target sooner than the governmentโ€™s target of 2050 because of new technologies not yet factored into the pathway. The TUC says this is โ€œgood news for the planetโ€, but could mean that regions need to transition even more rapidly than widely realised to bring Britainโ€™s workforce with them.


Read DeSmogโ€™s series โ€“ A Just Transition: From Fossil Fuels to Environmental Justice


Professor Kevin Anderson, of the University of Manchesterโ€™s Tyndall Centre of Climate and Research, told DeSmog: โ€œAt a high-level the TUCโ€™s Just Transition report provides a sensible process of inclusion to deliver the fundamental transformation required of the UKโ€™s energy system, including energy demand, infrastructure and supply.โ€

However, he described the 2050 target as โ€œhighly misleadingโ€. A paper published in June suggests the UKโ€™s carbon budget is 2.4-3.2 times higher than is Paris Agreement-compliant, and  therefore more aligned with 2.5-3ยฐC of warming than 1.5-2ยฐC.

โ€œThe TUCโ€™s headline framing reinforces the highly inequitable and deeply colonial โ€˜net-zero by 2050โ€™ agenda, now embedded in UK legislation and left largely unquestioned by both the academic and journalistic community,โ€ Anderson said. He urged the TUC to โ€œrevisit their analysis to deliver real-zero emissions by 2035-40.โ€

Despite these concerns, Oโ€™Grady is hopeful that the TUCโ€™s plan could build a truly sustainable future.

โ€œIf workers have a genuine say, plans can be agreed with the government and businesses that provide job security, and protect job quality,โ€ she said. 

โ€œThatโ€™s going to win community backing too, so progress will be both fairer and faster. And weโ€™ll all become proud when our generation delivers a major upgrade to Britain that improves everyoneโ€™s quality of life.โ€

Photo credit: Pxfuel

Phoebe Cooke headshot - credit Laura King Photography
Phoebe joined DeSmog in 2020. She is currently co-deputy editor and was previously the organisation's Senior Reporter.

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