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1 December, 2009Industrial trade union federations representing workers in the metal, chemical, energy and mining sectors in Europe and globally will be in Copenhagen in December 2009 demanding a strong legally-binding, comprehensive global agreement ensuring ambitious reduction of green house gas emissions. The federations will argue that social justice and long-term employment policies are an integral element of climate policy.
Text / Rob Johnston, IMF Executive Director
We live at a pivotal time in human history. This year will be a defining one for the climate. In December, governments will meet in Copenhagen to agree a new treaty to replace the Kyoto Protocol. Climate change is the great transformational issue of our time. Industrial unions believe that by cutting emissions and transforming jobs we can meet this challenge. We must set out a new green economy which addresses workers' concerns, but in order to do so it is vitally important that we get our message across and understood by governments, policy makers, businesses and communities.
Climate change is an issue that is moving up the political agenda in the majority of countries. Both the politics and policy are incredibly difficult. Whether you believe in the science of climate change or not, the fact is that the will of the majority of people seems to be for some global action on this issue. This means trade unions face a choice: we can try to argue against change, to fight against the majority view; or, we can influence the debate and the outcome to the benefit of ordinary working people. The simple fact is that the best people to represent industrial workers in a fair and balanced way are industrial workers themselves through trade unions.
For the International Metalworkers' Federation (IMF), our journey began at the IMF Congress in May 2009 where a resolution was passed calling on the IMF to develop a common position and represent the views of metalworkers in Copenhagen. The resolution also called for the IMF to seek discussions with other Global Union Federations in order to facilitate coordination of climate change policy across industrial sectors. On October 15 and 16 in Germany the IMF, the International Federation of Chemical, Energy, Mine and General Workers Unions (ICEM), the European Metalworkers' Federation (EMF) and the European Mine, Chemical and Energy Workers' Federation (EMCEF) held a joint meeting to develop common demands that could be presented in Copenhagen.
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