Capacity Building on Just Transition.

Workshop Objectives/Expected Outcomes

• Building the understanding of the trade union representatives on challenges posed by climate change for the world of work and review of main issues in key sectors for workers in this context;
• Create awareness on ILO’s Just Transition guidelines and its relevance for COTU-K and its affiliates in addressing challenges posed by Kenyan national government policies aimed at dealing with climate change (e.g Kenya’s nationally determined contributions, Climate Change Act 2016, GESIP etc);
• Setting up network of workers’ representatives for COTU affiliates for internationalizing the Just Transition guidelines of ILO into concrete trade union agenda & proposals for social dialogue in key sectors.

Proposed workshop sessions

1. Sustainable Development and Decent Work: Introductory session aimed at building understanding on the linkages between working conditions, sustainable development and relevance of ILO’s decent work agenda for environment, livelihoods and development and role of trade unions for promoting decent work and sustainable development.
2. Kenya Country and Sectoral Situation Review: Discussion of key employment issues and employment situation in key sectors, the main labour and environmental challenges in the key sectors and country in general, linkages between these two areas, state of social dialogue and Tripartite in regard to dealing with environmental/climate change issues in the key sectors, and related initiatives being undertaken by COTU-K affiliates.
3. ILO’s Just Transition Guidelines: Session to focus on key vision, guiding principles and type of policies proposed under ILO’s Just Transition (JT) guidelines.
4. Promoting Just Transition in the key Sectors: Ensuring COTU-K affiliates participation and Role, addressing key issues facing workers in key sectors; and Union Agenda for Social Dialogue and Collective Bargaining for Decent Work and Just Transition in key sectors.
5. Developing follow-up work plans: Participants will work in groups to prepare follow-up work plan proposals aimed at – internationalizing union agenda for just transition in key sectors (including sectoral policy proposals for Just Transition, inclusion of the proposal in their collective bargaining negotiations); advocacy and other actions to influence Government policies.

Key Issues

• Unpacking the JT concept followed by a discussion
• What would JT means for Trade Union?

Guiding questions

• How would JT in Kenya context look like
• What are the sectors that would be relevant to pursue JT?
• What are the gaps and existing policy spaces for shaping a JT in Kenya for the Trade Union?
• What new mechanisms can be explored and what would be the role the role of trade union in shaping JT?
• What spaces exist and what new spaces would be required for a JT?
• Conclusion and next steps: concertizing key issues on shaping a JT.

Based on evidence and lessons learned from country-level policies and sectoral strategies geared towards environmental sustainability, greening enterprises, social inclusion, and the promotion of green jobs, the Guidelines include:

• Employment-centered macroeconomic and growth policies;
• Environmental regulations in targeted industries and sectors;
• Creating an enabling environment for sustainable and greener enterprises;
• Social protection policies to enhance resilience and safeguard workers from the negative impacts of climate change, economic restructuring, and resource constraints;
• Labour market policies that actively pursue job creation, limit jobs loss and ensure that adjustments related to greening policies are well-managed;
• Occupational safety and health policies to protect workers from occupational hazards and risks;
• Skills development to ensure adequate skills at all levels to promote the greening of the economy;
• The establishment of mechanisms for social dialogue throughout policymaking processes at all levels, and
• Policy coherence and institutional arrangements for the mainstreaming of sustainable development and ensuring stakeholder dialogue and coordination between policy fields.

#Justtransition #climatechange #danishtradeuniondevelopmentagency.