By UNISON general secretary Christina McAnea
Today marks the beginning of Green UNISON Week, now an established part of the UNISON calendar and a mark of the importance we give this issue in UNISON.
And I applaud everyone taking part in the various green activities up and down the country, whether it’s becoming citizen scientists, putting on or attending a local green event, attending a national green workshop or considering taking on the new role of branch environmental officer this week. And it’s fantastic to see that UNISON has seen a 100% increase in branch environmental officers over the last 18 months!
Today we are also pleased to be launching our new guide, Bargaining on Green Issues in the Workplace, to support our members and activists who want to get more active on this agenda in their workplace.
Why is climate change so important to UNISON?
Collectively our workers across every sector are key stakeholders in the transformations necessary to meet the UK’s commitment challenge to get to net zero carbon emissions by 2050. Public services are vital to this agenda – that means we can use our influence to act, and to support our members’ actions, in addressing this emergency situation.
Our members are often at the frontline of managing the affects on our health and our environment. All our jobs are, or will be, affected in one way or another. And, of course, our energy workers are at the forefront of delivering the new renewable technologies and infrastructure that reduce reliance on fossil fuels.
This year, July saw the three highest global temperatures ever recorded and a new study showed that pollution alone now accounts for more deaths globally than war, disease and drugs combined.
Heatwaves are now estimated to kill 30 times more people a year than tropical cyclones. Yet, despite pollution and heatwaves causing such devastation, they are unseen catastrophes. Unlike floods, hurricanes and wildfires, they don’t leave a trail of physical destruction or striking images in the news.
And we know that, both at home and abroad, pollution and extreme heat prey on the poorest and most disadvantaged people. And it is public services, and our members, who have to pick up the pieces of these impacts in the UK.
We can’t afford to bury our head in the sand and hope this goes away.
While initial signs are very encouraging, we wait to see if this new Labour government will be ambitious enough to do what’s needed, both fairly and in time. The UK must urgently get back on track with its commitments and continue to lead and encourage others to do the same.
As a public service union, we are clear that the money we are not investing now, up-front, on meeting those vital carbon reduction targets will end up being spent 10 or a hundred times over on attempting to adapt to whatever comes next. That’s money that could and should be saved to strengthen the public services we all rely on.
How can members get involved
We must also encourage and enable our members to get active in the local transformations and negotiations that are already happening across public services. This will ensure that workers are recognised as key stakeholders in the plans that affect them, their families and their communities, and will ensure the transition to a greener UK is a fair one.
That’s why we introduced the new branch environmental officer role launched this new guide to support your engagement on this issue, Bargaining on Green Issues in the Workplace.
The guide provides details on how UNISON activists can get involved at every level and is just part of the direct support we have available, along with training and other resources to help you along the way.
International impact
Here in the UK, we have everything we need for a just and rapid transition away from fossil fuels – many other countries are not so lucky.
But UNISON is clear, getting to net zero on time in the UK can’t be at the cost of people’s livelihoods, or reliance on other countries taking on the burden instead of us.
We need to work together and meet this crisis head on with a planned approach to an urgent and just transition for all where no one is left behind and public services, and our members who provide them, need to be recognised as key stakeholders and given access to the negotiating tables when these vital transformation decisions are made.
The article Opinion: Why climate change is so important for UNISON first appeared on the UNISON National site.