EU metalworkers demand job protections amid green transition

euronews (in English)

European metalworkers in Brussels called for job protections and more training during the green transition. Since 2019, nearly one million industrial jobs have been lost, and many more are at risk.

Transcript

00:00Angry and discontent, metalworkers from across Europe met in Brussels.

00:10They fear for their jobs and their livelihoods because of the European green transition.

00:16They are demanding that the bloc's new industrial policy includes more safeguards for workers

00:20and families in the sector.

00:23One of the workers' demand is for the EU to create more effective training and retraining

00:28of workers, even at the expense of working time.

00:54Almost 1 million industrial jobs have been lost in the EU since 2019.

00:58According to the trade unions, employers are cosmeticising the full extent of the crisis

01:03with short-term contracts and reduced working hours, which could mean up to 4.3 million

01:08job losses.

01:10Trade unions say more than 100,000 jobs have been put at risk in recent months.

01:14Large companies across Europe have announced factory closures and redundancies.

01:18Two German companies, ThyssenKrupp and Volkswagen, are on the top of that list.

01:23To help with the transition, the EU has set up the Just Transition Fund as part of the

01:27Green Deal, with 17.5 billion euros.

01:30The amount seems big, but so is the task.

01:33I think it's good that we have a Just Transition Fund, but I think right now it's not big enough

01:38and it can't be used for everything that it needs to be used.

01:42For my intents, we need to broaden the scope, we need to have enough resources, especially

01:48in those regions where the transition really hasn't taken place yet.

01:52So it's important to have a strong Just Transition Fund to support those sectors that need to

01:57transition and make sure that the workers get the benefit of it.

02:03Trade union representatives also had talks with the European Commissioner for Industrial Strategy.

02:08They want the executive to draw up a directive on fair transitions, forcing companies to

02:13anticipate and manage change in full cooperation with trade unions.

02:22For more UN videos visit www.un.org

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