Energy Union must include just transition for workers

The European Commission’s Energy Union package is ambitious and broad-ranging, says the European Trade Union Confederation, but its ‘action points’ lack detail on how it will be achieved.

The ETUC welcomes the inclusion in the Energy Union package of references to:

  • A fair and just energy transition;
  • The job potential of energy efficiency and low-carbon technologies; 
  • Re-training and up-skilling for employees, plus social measures;
  • Dialogue between trade unions, employers and the EU on energy transition.

The Energy Union is an ambitious and much needed project with multiple potential benefits for industry, jobs, consumers and our climate,” said Józef Niemiec, Deputy General Secretary of the ETUC. “It will have winners and losers, and it is essential that workers are able to benefit from new job opportunities, and have alternatives in place when jobs are lost. The employment aspects must be part of the planning and implementation from the outset.”