Pacific trade unions unite to tackle climate crisis and safeguard workers’ futures

© International Labour Organization

© International Labour Organization

Nadi, Fiji (ILO News)- Organised by the International Labour Organisation (ILO) Office for Pacific Island Countries in collaboration with the ILO Bureau for Workers’ Activities (ACTRAV), the event brought together representatives from union leaders from Pacific nations, Indonesia, and the Philippines, as well as climate experts from various institutions.

The workshop took place at a pivotal time, as many Pacific Island nations are grappling with severe environmental challenges, including rising sea levels, volcanic eruptions, and increasingly destructive cyclones. These extreme weather events have already forced numerous communities to face displacement, relocation, and climate-driven migration. “This gathering wasn’t just another event. It was about something urgent — something that touches our jobs, our families, and our future,” said Martin Wandera, ILO Director for Pacific Island Countries.

The participants emphasized the need for union engagement in national and pacific-wide climate policy and initiatives to ensure human-centred approaches in their implementation, in particular the Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) and the 2050 Strategy for Blue Pacific Continent as well as the Pacific Regional Framework on Climate Mobility. Recognising the significance of solidarity and partnership, they committed to work together with employers and governments in taking climate action. “The CIWA will develop strategic partnerships with the Cook Islands Climate Change Office in the implementation of the NDC to ensure workers’ voices heard on safe working condition and employment transition”, Helen Maunga, Secretary of the Cook Islands Workers Association [CIWA] said.

Union leaders also committed to leverage advocacy and capacity building activities on climate impacts and a just transition to ensure protection of vulnerable workers and their families. “I have been made aware on how the Tonga National Workers Council (TNWC) could assist our members to be more resilient during and after natural disasters by ensuring they would have safer jobs especially those in the agricultural, fisheries and handicraft sectors, and those working in our electricity power company which is owned by our government” said Mele ‘Amanaki, National Secretary General, TNWC.

Prior to the event, the ILO, in coordination with ACTRAV and Pacific Climate Change, Migration, and Human Security (PCCHMS II) Program, has assisted trade unions to develop a union position paper on climate change and just transition. The workshop helped in sharpening unions’ climate action plans. This paper will serve as a cornerstone for guiding union engagement in national, regional and global climate forums.

“Climate change is not just an environmental issue — it’s a workers’ issue. Unions must be at the forefront to ensure that transitions are just, inclusive, and protect livelihoods across the Pacific,” said Semisi Turagabaleti, President of the Pacific Islands Council of Trade Unions (PICTU). This event succeeded in empowering a group of union leaders’ understanding of climate change and its surrounding issues, networking them for collective action, and exploring unions’ effective engagement in climate policies and actions.

Contact
Pong-Sul Ahn
Regional Specialist in Workers Activities
ILO Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific
Email: [email protected]