Examining the Role of AGs in a Just Transition

Abstract

Tackling the climate crisis requires transitioning from fossil fuel to clean energy, which will necessarily have a significant impact on jobs and the economy overall. The impact of this shift has sometimes been feared as a development that will be harmful to workers and the economy. Fossil fuel jobs are seen as good jobs--well-paid jobs with good benefits and protections--while the emerging clean energy industry has not yet uniformly embraced a high-road employment model. But workers’ rights and environmental concerns are not fundamentally incompatible. There are many policies and tools that can be and are being harnessed to bring about a “just transition,” ensuring that the emerging clean energy sector provides high-quality jobs and that needs of current fossil fuel workers are also adequately addressed. These policies exist at the intersection of workers’ rights and environmental policy.