The Social Dimension: Are green jobs decent jobs?

Abstract

FOCUS □ CLIMATE CHANGE ANDLABOURSTANDARDS The Social Dimension: Are green jobs decent jobs? Climate so-called ofgreen change jobs green we has jobs. might led With say to a an that wide explosion all definition jobsthat of Climate so-called greenjobs.With a widedefinition ofgreen jobswe might saythat alljobsthat contribute to environmentally sustainable development aregreen.Itmight span overall sectors andindustries and coverall workers as notonly newjobs inthe'clean'energy sectors aredeveloping ,but also when othersectorsare getting 'greener'. With increased development ofpolicies aimingat movingtowardsa morecarbonefficientsociety itis likely that thenumbers ofthese jobswillcontinue togrow.Itseemsthat environmentalconcernshave finally got the attention theydeserve in the sustainabledevelopment debate. Thequestion iswhether thesocialdimension is following. Do the presentpolicies on climate change and green jobs take sufficiently into accounttheworking conditions and qualityof thesejobs?Aregreenjobs decentjobs; jobs that areproductive andsecure, that ensurerespect for labour rights,which provide an adequate income, which offersocial protectionand includessocialdialogue,unionfreedom, collectivebargaining andparticipation? Thesearequestions which from the InternationalLabour Organisation's pointof view should be at the forefront inaddressing thegreenjobsandclimate changeagenda.Thereis a need to give equal attention to thesocial dimension of greenjobs and thetransition to a low carboneconomyin order toensuresustainable development. To datethere arenotmanydetailedstudieson working conditions in therelatively new green jobs. However,sectorssuch as recycling, hazardouswaste handlingand agriculture are not new and information on working conditions in thesesectors is available.Whennew studiesare developedbothintheseandinother sectors they tendtoconfirm that working conditions ingreen jobsarenotverydifferent from anyother jobs. Theworking conditions intherecycling industry inChinahaveoften been citedas particularly poor and dangerous.Recycling work is also sometimes precarious andgenerates lessthanlivingwagesandincomes . A study onworking conditions at recycling centres in Swedennow also showsthat employees inthisbranch haveone of thehighest accident ratesinSweden.Risksrelated tothewrork environment thatwereidentified includedfrequent heavylifts, handlingof hazardouswasteandfalling downintocontainers. Theagriculture sector is knownforitsgrowing job insecurity, low ratesof pay,poor working conditions and growing levelsofpoverty. When lookingat the agriculture sectorfroma green jobsperspective and itsgrowing biofuelproductionincountries likeBrazil,Colombia, Malaysia, andIndonesia studies showthat plantations often involvesexcessiveworkloads, poor pay, exposure to pesticides, and oppressionof workers. Working conditions within thesugarcanesector in Brazil are notorious, markedby crowding, poor hygieneand nutrition, and violence by company security guards against workers. Plantation workers havefewrights, especially as Indonesiaand Malaysia(a dominantpalm oil producer) havenotsignedkeyILO Conventions. Indonesian migrantworkers labouring on Malaysian plantations are particularly vulnerable topredatory practices andforced labour. In addition ,regulations and monitoring are weak or non-existent when it comes to the dangerous agrochemicals thatmanyplantation workers are exposedto. Organisinginthe new industries A reportfromGoodJobsFirsthas examined working conditions in someenvironment-friendlysectors suchas manufacturing ofcomponents for windandsolarenergy andgreenconstruction in the UnitedStates.Some of the observations relate towages,off-shoring, collective bargaining andunionisation. Whether itis healthand safety issues,wage concernsorunionisation itis clearthatdecentwork ingreenjobsisas mucha challenge as itisinany otherjob. The body of International Labour Biofuelproduction ofteninvolves excessive workloads,poor pay,exposure to pesticides, and oppression of workers LENE OLSEN isSpecialist in Workers' Activities with the ILO workers' bureau ACTRAV in Geneva The responsibility for opinions expressed in the article rests solely with the author, and publication does not constitute anendorsement by the International Labour Office of the opinions expressed in it. Page 5Volume 17Issue 1201 0 INTERNATIONAL union rights Low pay isnot uncommon in the workplaces profiled. Wage rates atmany wind andsolar manufacturing facilities arebelow thenational average for workers employed inthemanufacture ofdurable goods. In some locations, average pay rates fall short ofincome levels needed tosupport a single adult with onechild. SomeUS windandsolarmanufacturers have already begun tooffshore production ofcomponents destined for USmarkets tolow-wage havens such as China andMexico. Examples ofoff-shoring include the manufacture ofblades for wind turbines, defying the common assumption that such blades aretoolarge to ship overseas. Very few workers atwind andsolar manufacturing workplaces identified inthecourse oftheresearch arecovered bycollective bargaining agreements. In atleast two instances, this appears tobea direct result ofaggressive anti-union campaigns run byemployers with the help of union-busting consultants. Onthe construction side, itwasfound that a leading contractor engaged inenergy efficiency work hasa similarly hostile approach tounions. Thestudy did not find specific wages for non union construction workers employed ingreen building, but publicly available data suggests that that overall construction wages arefar lower than those of the union members profiled inthereport. FOCUS □ CLIMATECHANGE ANDLABOURSTANDARDS Employersat some windand solar manufacturing workplaces have runaggressive anti-union campaigns with the help of union-busting consultants Standards whicharean 'inseparable, interrelated andmutually supportive' partoftheDecentWork Agenda is very much relevantto the...