The Just Transition Round Table was a first-ever event held by the New Zealand Council of Trade Unions Te Kauae Kaimahi in Wellington on Friday 5th October.
This was a full day event held at Te Wharewaka O Poneke for trade unions, government, businesses, Māori representatives, and environmentalists to explore how New Zealand can fairly transition to a net-zero emissions economy, while providing good jobs in well-supported communities.
A series of panels throughout the day included views from the government on a Just Transition with Ministers Hon. James Shaw, Hon. Dr. Megan Woods and Hon. Iain Lees-Galloway. Keynote speaker Samantha Smith, Director of the ITUC Just Transition Centre, spoke about the global momentum for a Just Transition.
Additional speakers included Laures Park and Aubrey Wilkinson of the CTU Runanga, John Carnegie (Business NZ), Tony Maher (CFMMEU Australia), Tumanako Wereta (Tuaropaki Trust), and Adelia Hallet (Forest and Bird).
This video features messages from CTU Secretary Sam Huggard, ITUC Just Transition Director Samantha Smith, PSA Organiser Susannah Bailey, and PSA members Amanda Larsson (Greenpeace NZ) and David Tong (WWF) on the importance of unions in a Just Transition.
“It’s really important to me that unions are driving this debate in New Zealand, because we want to make sure that the interests of workers are really clear in this process” says Sam Huggard.
Keynote speaker Samantha Smith (pictured) joined the event from the US to speak about the global momentum behind a Just Transition.
“Unions have to be at the table. They bring their experience and knowledge about what their communities need, what their economy needs, and what the companies where they work need in order to bring down emissions, improve productivity, and create better jobs” she says.
If you’re interested in in generating union activity around environmental issues in the workplaces and beyond, check out the PSA Eco Network here and view our promotional video here.
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