Download new conference flyer

Download the new flyer for the conference here.

 

Register now for Conference 2010

Campaign Against Climate Change 3^rd Trade Union Conference

13 March 2010

South Camden Community School, London

Speakers include: Tony Kearns (CWU), Chris Baugh (PCS), RMT, Graham Pietersan (UCU), Jonathan Neale (CaCC), Vestas Worker, Larry Lohman (Cornerhouse), Prof. Barbara Harriss-White, John Stewart (HACAN) plus others

The Campaign Against Climate Change Trade Union conference have brought together hundreds of Trade Unionists to discuss the role that the Trade Union movement can play in the fight against Climate Change. Our previous conferences have been a great success, but our third occurs against a backdrop that is even more urgent. Working people face the twin threat of economic recession and climate disaster. The failure to agree a serious strategy for dealing with climate change at the Copenhagen Climate Conference underlines this problem.

Along with the PCS, CWU and UCU we have launched a campaign for 1 million climate jobs. We are arguing that government investment can create jobs that reduce Greenhouse emissions and provide jobs. Our pamphlet arguing this case has already sold thousands of copies and is into its second print run.

Come to this conference and join the debate about how we can win the fight for a million climate jobs.

Registration is £10 (waged) £5 (low-paid, unemployed).

Please consider asking your Trade Union branch / region to support and send a delegation to the conference.

Registration form:

Name:

Address:

Email (Please print clearly):

Telephone:

Trade Union body:

Please make cheques payable to “Campaign Against Climate Change” and send to

Martin Empson

Treasurer, Campaign Against Climate Change Trade Union group

611 Canon Green Court

West King Street

Salford

M3 7HB

For more information, please call 079 585 35231, email climatetradeunion@googlemail.com

Conference 2010 Model Resolution

Get you branch to support this conference by putting our model resolution.

This branch recognises:

· That Climate Change is an issue of enormous concern. Latest scientific evidence shows that the world is warming faster than expected.

· The changing climate will lead to more flooding, droughts, famine and hurricanes across the globe affecting the poorest in society first and greatest across the globe.

· The Copenhagen conference failed to agree a response that will do enough to address the problem of climate change.

· Climate Change is a major issue for Trade Unions, many of whom have supported climate events in the last year.

· We need government investment in green industries such as renewable energy, insulation of all homes and workplaces, re-skilling of workers and research into further technological development. This will create or save tens of thousands of jobs at a time when many are concerned for their own future employment.#

· The launch of the “Million Climate Jobs” campaign, by the Campaign Against Climate Change, supported by the PCS, CWU, UCU and TSSA unions.

· The Third Trade Union conference on Climate Change taking place on March 13^th.

This branch therefore resolves to:

1. Support, publicise and encourage members to attend the third Campaign Against Climate Change Trade Union Conference (CCCTU) in London on Saturday 13^th March 2010.

2. Donate £___ to the organisers towards the cost of the conference and sponsor the CCCTU conference in the name of this Branch.

3. Order ____ copies of the “Million Climate Jobs pamphlet” at £2 each

4. Send our banner to both events.

Please send cheques, payable to “Campaign Against Climate Change” to

 CCC TU conference

c/o Martin Empson

611 Canon Green Court

West King Street

Salford

M3 7HB

 For more information on the CaCC Trade Union group, 

contact Martin 079 585 35 231 

or email climatetradeunion@googlemail.com

Third trade union climate change conference

Download the flyer for the 2010 Campaign Against Climate Change Trade Union Conference here.

 

One Million Green Jobs Now!

The Campaign against Climate Change Trade Union Group has produced a 50 page pamphlet, ONE MILLION CLIMATE JOBS NOW. This comes out of an alliance of a wide range of unions, campaigns and experts and can be downloaded here.

This is not a policy report intended to be read by a few and gather dust. It is the first step in a national campaign to make the government employ a million unemployed workers to save the climate. It contains the arguments workers need for building that campaign. It will take mass action to make the government act. But first we have to convince people. Here is how we start:

You can get one copy for £2 or ten at a time for £15 from: The Campaign against Climate Change, www.campaingncco.org, info@campaigncc.org, or 0207-833-9311, or from the following people at union head offices:

Anne Elliott-Day at PCS

Manuel Cortes at TSSA

Tony Kearns at CWU

Janet Pantland at UCU.

Then sell the pamphlet at all the union, political and environmental events you can.

The key step is to get a small group of union activists together to start organising. Four people in a room in your town is enough. The Campaign union group will send a speaker. Contact Martin Empson on 07958535231.

Then contact union branches and workplace groups in your town. Ask the reps to take five or ten copies. If they take it and like it, try to get a speaker to a branch meeting or stewards meeting. Contact by phone is better than email, contact in person is best.

Organise a public meeting for One Million Climate Jobs Now in January or Feb. This does not have to be large. All it has to be is the largest meeting of union members about climate ever in your city. That’s not very big. For speakers contact Martin Empson 0795853231.

The Campaign will be sending out copies of a petition and a model union resolution, and will campaign for the TUC to call a national demonstration.

A longer report will come out in March. And the Campaign against Climate Change will have a national conference on Saturday March 15 in London to discuss how we organise to win a million new jobs.

Fight for 1,000,000 Green Jobs

You can download the colour version of this campaign leaflet here or the black and white one here. 

Climate Change threatens millions around the globe. The most recent studies suggest that without serious action, our future, together with the eco-systems around us, is very bleak.

This December the international community gathers in Copenhagen to discuss a new climate change treaty. At the same time, we are facing what may well be the worst economic crisis since the Second World War.In Britain we face unemployment levels of almost 3 million.

Major demonstrations have been called to coincide with the climate talks. In the UK, these will take place in London and Edinburgh on Saturday 5 December.

Gordon Brown’s government has promised to create green jobs. Yet their proposals are too drawn out. They allowed 600 wind turbine workers at Vestas to lose their jobs this year.

We urgently need investment in green energy, public transport, insulation schemes and the like. This has the potential to create a million green jobs. Instead they bailed the banks out with billions of our money, and already the bankers have returned to greed and bonuses. We need money spent on saving the planet and creating jobs.

The Vestas’ workers struggle shows there is a huge amount of solidarity when it comes to fighting for green jobs.

The Campaign Against Climate Change will be holding a rally in Hyde Park before the main demonstration. We want a huge delegation of trade unionists from across the country to back the call for a million green jobs. We will then join “The Wave” and surround Parliament.

“The Wave” has been called by the Stop Climate Chaos Coalition, with the backing of over 100 groups.

Get your branch to support our 2010 conference

Use this model resolution to get your union organisation to support CACCTU’s 2010 conference.

This branch recognises:

• That Climate Change is an issue of enormous concern. Latest scientific evidence shows that the world is warming faster than expected.

• The changing climate will lead to more flooding, droughts, famine and hurricanes across the globe affecting the poorest in society first and greatest across the globe.

• Climate Change is a major issue for Trade Unions, many of whom have supported climate events in the last year, including the Campaign Against Climate Change (CaCC) Trade Union conference with over 200 delegates.

• We need government investment in green industries such as renewable energy, insulation of all homes and workplaces, re-skilling of workers and research into further technological development. This will create or save tens of thousands of jobs at a time when many are concerned for their own future employment.

• That this December’s UN Climate Talks in Copenhagen are an important opportunity to secure global, democratic commitments to measures that might avert climate catastrophe, before our planet’s ecology destabilises irreversibly.

• The Copenhagen talks will be marked by demonstrations across the globe calling on governments to agree concrete action on climate change. In London, the demonstration is called by the Stop Climate Chaos Coalition, supported by the Campaign Against Climate Change and the National Union of Teachers.

This branch therefore resolves to:

1. Support, publicise and encourage members to attend the demonstration in London on Saturday 5^th December.

2. Support, publicise and encourage members to attend the third Campaign Against Climate Change Trade Union Conference (CCCTU) in London on Saturday 13^th March 2010.

3. Donate £___ to the organisers towards the cost of the conference and sponsor the CCCTU conference in the name of this Branch.

4. Send our banner to both events.

Please send cheques, payable to “Campaign Against Climate Change” to

 

CCC TU conference

30 Church Lane

Prestwich

Manchester

M25 1AJ

 

For more information on the CaCC Trade Union group,

contact Martin 079 585 35 231

or email climatetradeunion@googlemail.com

Tackling Climate Change

This climate change motion being submitted by Ealing Association to the National Union of Teachers  conference next Easter.

Conference congratulates the work done by union officials on the basis of existing policy by, amongst other things,  supporting protests called by the Campaign Against Climate Change,  securing a joint-union fund from DEFRA to train workplace ‘green reps’ and organising NUT training days. We also recognise the many steps being taken by members in schools to both educate young people about the causes of and threats from catastrophic climate change, as well as taking practical steps to lessen our carbon footprint. 

Conference welcomes the Save Vestas campaign during the summer of 2009 which saw the environmental and trade union movements working closely together for the first time, as a model of unity in action that we want to encourage and see more of in the future.  In particular, the Save Vestas campaign has brought onto the wider agenda the need for collective, class-conscious solutions to the issues. It has also exposed the shallowness of governmental commitment to both renewable energy alternatives, such as wind power, and green job creation, despite the targets set in its Climate Bill.

However, Conference also believes that the union has to intensify its own work against climate change, in terms of both policy and action, as part of the wider workers’ movement.  

For example, we need to thoroughly scrutinise the energy solutions being promoted by government such as the switch to bio-fuel production, the reliance on untested Carbon Capture and Storage coal plants, renewed investment in nuclear power and carbon trading. We also need to challenge any reliance on the private sector to create green jobs and develop sufficient energy provision from renewable and carbon-negative means.

Conference further believes that action on these issues requires the maximum of unity across the trade union and environmental movement, such as at Copenhagen in December 2009.

Conference therefore instructs the executive to:

1. Affiliate to the Campaign against Climate Change, and the wider Stop Climate Chaos umbrella organisation.
2. Develop with such campaigning groups educational materials for schools that teachers can use to teach about the issues underpinning climate change and how to tackle it.
3. Continue to develop green reps in associations and schools and CPD events that address the full range of issues related to climate change.
4. Support the call for a million new green jobs and 10% carbon emission reduction by the end of 2010.

VESTAS NATIONAL DAY OF ACTION

OPEN AIR SOLIDARITY RALLY – TRADE UNIONISTS, GLOBAL JUSTICE ACTIVISTS AND ENVIRONMENTALISTS UNITE TO SAVE JOBS AND SAVE THE PLANET
Thursday, 17 September 2009
17:00 – 18:30
Nye Bevan Statue
End of Queen St
Cardiff

SUPPORTED BY Cardiff RMT Branch, PCS Wales, Campaign against Climate Change, Leanne Wood AM, Climate Camp Cymru, World Development Movement Cardiff, People and Planet, Cardiff Young Greens And others!

We’re holding an open air rally in Cardiff with a worker from the factory coming down to speak alongside Trade Unionists, Socialists and Climate Activists.
We are also encouraging people to put banners outside their windows at work, college or home supporting the campaign, do collections and get people to leave their work or college for an hour on the day in protest. The Campaign against Climate Change has produced teacher’s packs so that students can learn about climate change on the day.
We will be selling Green Ribbons in the run up to the day and on the day for £1 and send all the money to the workers who’ve lost their jobs.
The occupiers and the people in the campaign have asked for this kind of solidarity. They have also demanded that the fight should be taken to the labour party conference in Brighton on 27th September.
If you are in South East Wales & want to get involved please contact us. Please leave suggestions about what you can on the day or contact us at cardiffccc@hotmail. co.uk . And tell as many people as possible!

In solidarity,
Adam Johannes
Cardiff Campaign against Climate Change
07940108146

Vestas campaign update, 10 September 2009

 The workers and supporters are maintaining a blockade of the factory. The main leverage they have over politicians and the Vestas company is to prevent Vestas removing the remaining blades and valuable equipment at will.

In a press release this morning, the workers explained:

“We, the workers, see it as our duty to stop our blades from leaving, as part of the campaign to nationalise the factory. Vestas have told us that there is no demand for our products but are still unwilling to sell the site to other interested parties. It is clear the government must act on such an important issue as renewable energy production. They should not let our future be dictated solely by profit.

“We are calling on the government to invest in green jobs on the Isle of Wight , and for Vestas to reinstate the eleven sacked workers who occupied the factory.”

The workers urgently need help with the blockade, as the company is likely to try and remove the blades and equipment in the coming days. If you are able to go to the Isle of Wight and join the blockade, mobilise others to go, or raise funds to support those who are maintaining the blockade, please contact savevestas@googlemail.com.

You can find advice for getting to the Isle of Wight and a map showing the location of the Vestas factory on the blog: http://savevestas.wordpress.com/travel-noticeboard/.

If you would like to make a donation, the details have now changed; please send cheques payable to “RMT IOW 2 VESTAS HARDSHIP & DEFENCE FUND” to Keith Murphy, 57 Well Street , Ryde, IOW PO33 2RY, or you can continue to donate by PayPal online at the blog.

 Thursday 17th September will be the second national day of action around the Vestas campaign. A number of events are planned around the country, many of them advertised on the blog. If you know of any more or would like advice on planning an event, please contact savevestas@googlemail.com.

Thank you for your support so far. The campaign for green jobs on the Isle of Wight and around the UK is continuing, and needs your continued support.