“Climate change is about people, their wellbeing and their jobs,” said Sophie Dupressoir of the European Trade Union Confederation (ETUC), a member of the 14-nation union delegation. “Extreme climate events destroy lives. They also result in population displacements and job losses, and have enormous employment and social implications”.

At the delegation meeting, trade unions confimed their full and active support for the Kyoto Protocol. They argued that Europe can reduce sharply its emissions and create new jobs without creating social problems. Trade unions have shown they are ready to take their responsibilities seriously, provided there are frameworks for tripartite social dialogue between government, trade unions and employers working on the Kyoto commitments, as well as stronger rights for information and consultation. The union delegation welcomed the support of several governments for the trade unions’ concerns. “The Convention, whose framework is sustainable development, must integrate a strong social dimension with employment as a key element. The European Union must promote this approach in the negotiations”, said the representative of the ETUC.

It is urgent to reduce population vulnerability to the consequences of climate change. It is a real challenge in developing countries where social protection is often lacking and where informal work is prominent. “Any solution to reduce vulnerability and ease adaptation to these extreme events must include a reference to access to employment”, insisted the trade union delegation. On this basis, the UK presidency of the European Union was invited to work hard towards the opening of the post-Kyoto debate at the Montreal Conference.

Union representatives from the UK, Spain and Belgium presented evidence of their successful involvement in the social dialogues established in these countries related to the national plans to implement the Protocol. The ETUC announced the launch of an innovative, 11-nation European study on the implications for employment and training of the EU commitment to cut green house gas emissions in 2012 and 2030. By doing so, the European trade unions demonstrated that they can make positive inputs into policies needed to face that challenge.

 Trade Unions recommandation for COP11

The European trade union delegation ( ETUC, TUC, FGTB, CC.OO, CSC, ...) Contact : Sophie Dupressoir, sdupressoir@etuc.org, +324 73 65 3423