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Transport workers set climate change agenda
03/08/10
Transport workers will take responsibility for tackling climate change tomorrow, 4 August, as representatives of hundreds of trade unions meet at a groundbreaking conference in Mexico City. This one day event, solely dedicated to finding strategies for fairer, more sustainable and less polluting transport, will then feed into the ITF (International Transport Workers’ Federation) four-yearly congress, which begins the following day*.
The conference’s standalone status ahead of the ITF congress reflects the organisation’s recognition of the urgency of addressing and changing the role of transport in accelerating climate change.
The conference will recommend three resolutions which, if passed, will be binding on the ITF and its policies for the next four years. To support its search for new strategies and alliances on climate change the ITF has also worked with the Global Labor Institute at Cornell University, USA, to develop ideas about the problem and the solutions which it requires. A discussion document will be unveiled at the conference and will be made available at www.itfcongress2010.org/files/extranet/-2/24239/ITF%20Climate%20Change%20Conference%20Discussion%20Document%202010.pdf as a resource to stimulate debate during the Mexican meetings and beyond.
Alana Dave, ITF Education Officer, explained: “This conference is a historic first for the ITF, and one that reflects a growing recognition that transport unions need to respond to the issue of climate change at a workplace level and beyond.”
She continued: “Transport is a significant and growing source of emissions, responsible for around 14 per cent of the global total. We aim to take a lead in promoting a science-based approach which utilises ‘reduce-shift-improve’ strategies that will contribute to the major transformations which are necessary in the transport industry and society as a whole. We particularly support the creation of sustainable jobs and a just transition.”
The conference will study three resolutions on climate change proposed by the ITF’s member unions around the world. The most wide-ranging of these is Motion One, which is already being backed by 51 trade unions. It is shown in full at the end of this press release**.
The ITF is committed to building alliances to avoid dangerous climate change, and continues to work with Global Unions at the international level, such as at COP15 in Copenhagen and the forthcoming COP16 negotiations in Cancun in December 2010.
ENDS
ITF press contacts during the Congress
Sam Dawson, in London. Tel: +44 (0)20 7940 9260. Email: dawson_sam@itf.org.uk
Alfonso Bahena, in Mexico City: Tel: 044 55 5939 9391/ +52 1 55 5939 9391. Email: bahena_alfonso@itf.org.uk
*For more details of the ITF congress, taking place from 5 to 12 August 2010 please see the press area at www.itfcongress2010.org/press.cfm where you can find free downloadable photos, press releases, the history of the congress, speaker biographies and more. A constantly updated general guide to the congress, how it works and its daily progress can be found at www.itfcongress2010.org.
**Motion 1: Responding to Climate Change
The ITF 42nd Congress, meeting in
1. Acknowledging the fact that global warming is already occurring with the 10 hottest years on record having happened since 1990, and the massive danger presented by further climate change to human civilisation;
2. Noting the scientific consensus that global warming is caused by human activities which pump carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gas emissions into the atmosphere;
3. Acknowledging that responsibility for global greenhouse gas emissions has to be understood in the context of historical and existing inequalities in wealth and access to services between industrialised and developing countries, resulting in substantial differentials in per capita emissions;
4. Acknowledging that while responsibility for emissions lies with rich and powerful nations, it is the poorest countries which are the most vulnerable to the effects of climate change through impacts on agriculture, food security, water supplies, weather, health, ecosystems and infrastructure, including transport
5. Realising that extraordinary weather conditions (droughts, flooding, etc) due to climate change have already destroyed jobs, homes and peoples’ lives, particularly in developing countries, and if little is done, millions of jobs and peoples’ livelihood will be further at risk;
6. Believes therefore that ambitious mitigation action is fundamental if we want to leave our children a sustainable world and a chance for social and development goals to be achieved, and that these actions must be fairly shared and distributed between and within countries;
7. Noting that transport is responsible for 14% of global emissions, with the transport sector accounting for over a quarter of total world energy use, and that private motoring represents more then half of these;
8. Is concerned that transport emissions have increased dramatically over the past 30 years, and are increasing in all regions of the world at a faster rate than any other energy-using sector of the economy; in some countries, rising transport emissions have outweighed the reductions made in other sectors;
9. Acknowledging that transport costs have become too low, mainly due to the fact that most transport modes do not cover their external costs and that wages and working conditions have been weakened and undermined during the neo-liberal era of the past 30 years;
10. Aware that emissions from fossil fuels are not only a problem for the environment, but also for the health and safety of transport workers;
11. Noting the conclusions of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (
12. Noting that there is a growing body of scientists who maintain that the 2 degrees scenario is itself dangerous given the potential climate impacts on vulnerable countries and communities, and that low lying costal communities in particular therefore will require more radical measures and support;
13. Aware that limiting warming to no more than 2 degrees requires a sharp reduction in the volume of emissions entering our atmosphere, and that steps need to be taken now to achieve a 25-40% cut from 1990-levels by 2020 and a 50-80% cut by 2050;
14. Believes that the market-based solutions of governments and employers have thus far failed to seriously deal with rising emissions, and that addressing the climate crisis will require a far-reaching political and economic transformation driven by alternative social and environmental priorities, including major government driven investments, social and technological innovation and skills development, social protection and trade union involvement;
15. Believes that the environmental impact of transport is inseparable from how transport is controlled and organized in the global economy. The greater part of transport needs are not created in the transport sector itself, but are created by demands in other parts of the economy, through existing production and consumption patterns. The growth in transport emissions is thus a result of a transport system geared towards a trade-based model of economic expansion, just-in-time production and the competitive needs of multinational corporations, resulting in negative effects for workers, communities and the environment;
RESOLVES that:
a. The ITF and its affiliates take a science-based approach to emissions reductions and climate change, and therefore commit themselves to defining and contributing to the major transformations which are required in transport and across society as a whole.
b. The ITF develops sustainable transport alternatives based on a Reduce-Shift-Improve (RSI) framework which recognises that to achieve emission reductions there will have to be fundamental changes in the current system of globalised production which relies on global supply chains, low transport costs and cheap and increasingly casual labour.
c. The ITF thus supports initiatives and measures which strengthen democratic control of the economy, curb financial speculation, reorient financial flows towards sustainable developments and re-introduce market regulations as necessary measures to reduce unnecessary transport needs, stop cut-throat competition and plan an integrated and sustainable transport system.
d. The ITF considers the necessary transition to a low-carbon economy and a sustainable transport system as an opportunity to creating a better society for all – with more equality between countries and people, eradication of poverty, increased democracy, better working conditions and less pressure and stress.
e. The ITF will insist that developed countries take their historic responsibility for the climate crisis and thus assist developing countries in their transition to sustainable economic development through transformation funds, national control of natural resources and free transfer of technology.
f. The ITF support the transition to a green industry policy to achieve the necessary emission reductions and the creation of millions of new socially and environmentally sustainable jobs. This policy must be based on national programmes which link infrastructure investments, procurement policies, local content rules and positive support for domestic manufacturing to underpin the transition to a low-carbon society.
g. The ITF will never accept that the transition to a low-carbon society takes place through increased unemployment and the undermining of wages and working conditions of transport workers. A just transition therefore has to involve job creation, decent work and quality jobs, a radical redistribution of wealth and social security schemes which safeguard peoples’ livelihood and social and human rights.
h. ITF industrial sections and structures must work together to define the specific measures required in each transport section for changing the way goods and people are moved around as well as new methods and technologies to promote energy efficiency.
i. The ITF supports that all transport modes cover their own external costs — including costs which are today paid by society as a whole. This should not, of course, prevent governments from organising collectively financed universal public services. Access to the industry should be tightly regulated. Wages, working conditions and social standards for transport workers should be improved, in order to reduce transport demands which are created as a result of substandard conditions and low costs.
j. The ITF leads a campaign for the rapid scaling up of good public transport services world-wide, and the development of infrastructure to help counter rampant motorisation.
k. The ITF supports the inclusion of emission reduction targets for international maritime and aviation in a new global agreement, and as a matter of urgency will develop a union position on the proposed measures for developing and implementing these targets. The ITF will continue to play an active role in ICAO and
l. The ITF and its affiliates build alliances with other social and environmental movements at a local, regional and global level to support sustainable transport alternatives and wider transformation.
m. The ITF continues to participate in and support Global Union initiatives on climate change, including trade union representation at global intergovernmental climate change talks and for measures and solutions which can guarantee a just transition to a low-carbon society.
n. The ITF secretariat should:
- represent the joint interests of transport workers to secure a just transition to a sustainable transport system based on secure jobs, good wages and decent working conditions.
- research and develop guidelines and case-studies on how adaptation and mitigation measures might impact on the organisation of work in the transport industry.
- implement a comprehensive education programme on climate change in all ITF regions to raise awareness and build union capacity to respond to climate change.
- build a network of affiliates interested in planning and coordinating union activities on climate change.
- allocate adequate resources for continued work on climate change.
ITF 42nd Congress Press Pack
What is the ITF?
The International Transport Workers’ Federation (ITF) is a global organisation representing over 4.6 million transport workers worldwide. Unions – currently 760 from 154 countries – affiliate to the ITF, which is able to carry their interests into the global arena.
More details are available at www.itfglobal.org
What is the ITF Congress?
The four yearly Congress is the ITF’s supreme decision making event, at which delegates from its affiliated trade unions are able to vote to determine the course the ITF will take until the next Congress. It elects the ITF’s Executive Board, President, Vice Presidents and General Secretary; approves – or not – the organisation’s last four years’ work; and sets the agenda for the next four years. It also approves reports from the ITF’s industrial sections, which meet during the congress.
More details are available at www.itfcongress2010.org
Congress timetable
For details of the Congress timetable please see www.itfcongress2010.org/timetable-agenda.cfm
Images
Downloadable photos will be posted at www.flickr.com/photos/itf/sets/72157624361945943 during Congress. Please feel free to use these gratis.
Congress online
This website is being updated continuously for the duration of Congress, and features daily notices (www.itfcongress2010.org/dailynotices.cfm) , news (www.itfcongress2010.org/news.cfm), downloadable documents (www.itfcongress2010.org/documents.cfm), images (www.itfcongress2010.org/congresspictures.cfm) , video clips (www.itfcongress2010.org/videogallery.cfm) and blog posts(www.itfglobal.org/congress2010blog), as well as a complete list of motions and resolutions (www.itfcongress2010.org/documents.cfm/categoryID/78).
Venue information
The website of the Hilton Mexico City is available via www1.hilton.com/en_US/hi/hotel/MEXRFHH-Hilton-Mexico-City-Reforma/index.do
Practical information
View information on hotel bookings, passport requirements and
Previous ITF Congresses
A full list of the ITF’s previous Congresses, from the first in
الصحف ذات العلاقة:
29/07/10
One week to go to ITF world congress in Mexico City
The world congress of the ITF (International Transport Workers’...
الأخبار ذات العلاقة:
19/07/10
إطلاق موقع كونجرس الـITF الالكتروني
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صفحات ذات علاقة:
42nd Congress
The next Congress of the ITF will take place in Mexico City...
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