While Pakistan transits to the green economy, the labourers and unions stand the risks and gains ahead. There is a need to understand how this change affects workers towards guaranteeing a social and workers-friendly transition to sustainable living.

What is the Green Economy?

A green economy means arranging an economy with the stability of the environment, as the economic growth remains stable and internal. It includes cutting down on carbon dioxide CO₂ emissions, using energy efficiently, and protecting biological diversity.

Why Should Labourers and Unions Care About Green Economy?

For labourers and trade unions, both opportunities and challenges exist in the green economy. At the same time, such promising developing fields as renewable power and recycling or reprocessing can create jobs, and open new professions in the fields of solar power supply, wind power and in the domains of environment protection and management.

However, on the other hand, there are occupations and jobs typical for old-economy countries involved in coal, oil and manufacturing that might suffer huge job losses as the world turns green. This double effect underlines the necessity to involve trade unions in the process of retraining the workers displaced and their further job placement addressing the flourishing green industries.

However, as green industries are being adopted, workers in ordinary industries may lose their sources of income, and thus the unions should encourage the social actors to focus on training and retraining for new programs.

The Green Economy in Pakistan

The green economy is slowly coming into focus in Pakistan where the devastation of climate change are now becoming apparent. Positive indicators of change are the Ten Billion Tree Tsunami Program, the Electric Vehicle Policy, and goals and policies of renewable energy.

Future targets of Pakistan in the framework of the Paris Agreement is aimed to reduce carbon emissions by 20% by the year 2030; To achieve the aftermentioned goal, Pakistan has framed an ambitious plan, where it aims to increase 60% of its energy portfolio from the renewable sources and it also wants to popularize electric vehicles.

At the same time, it can be stated that the country still lacks the necessary advances in making the transition to a green economy inclusive of workers and trade unions. There is no strategy for the consequences of unemployment in manufacturing and other old economy sectors, green jobs employees are not involved in the formulation of green policies, and training for new job types is insufficient.

Challenges For Labourers and Unions In Pakistan

• Job Insecurity: The energy sector and manufacturing industries that use cheap coal power will soon affect jobs and lay off workers as Pakistan changes its supply system to cleaner power alternatives. For example, there are no new architectural coal power plants being constructed anymore, and this puts labourers out of jobs. There is no specific roadmap laid to reskill or upskill these workers raising unemployment chances for them.
• Labourers In The Informal Sector: Informal Sector Workers: Under the informal economy, some reports reveal that 72-75% of the workforce of Pakistan is outside of formal employment. The following categories of workers, who do not enjoy social protection, stand to be locked out from the green economy jobs. Here unions must go out and demand their inclusion in green policy.
• Limited Worker Representation and Unlawful Misrepresentation: One of the biggest challenges faced by labourers in Pakistan is the limited representation of true worker representatives in key policy discussions. Often, individuals with influence, rather than legitimate worker representatives, are given opportunities to speak on national and international platforms. This unlawful or misrepresentation sidelines the real concerns of the workers, weakening the effectiveness of labour advocacy. Trade unions need to push for genuine worker representation in all forums, ensuring that policies reflect the actual needs and interests of the labour force.
• Lack of Awareness About Climate Change and the Green Economy:A significant challenge is that many workers, especially those in traditional sectors, are largely unaware of the concepts of climate change and the green economy. Without proper understanding, workers may not realize how these issues affect their jobs and livelihoods. A wider awareness campaign is essential, particularly among youth who are generally more tech-savvy and open to adopting new skills. Educating young workers about green technologies and sustainable practices will be key to a smooth transition.
• Lack of Social Dialogue:The principal stakeholder whose interests need to be represented in order to improve the applicability of policies for embracing the green economy is the workers. Trade unions in Pakistan have very little input into decision-making process on environmental issues and thus the positive changes in the environmental policies are unlikely to address the workers’ rights’ concerns they might have including job security, wages, and fair working conditions. More participation of the unions in these talks is necessary to obtain just transition.

Opportunities For Labourers and Unions In Pakistan

• Jobs for Labourers in Green Economy: Green economy is promising citing employment opportunities which may be offered by renewable energy, waste management and eco-tourism. Experts say that through a green economy, labourers can be occupied as solar panel installers, recycling technicians or ecotourism operators among others. Nevertheless, in the absence of training and resource developers, many workers may be unable to secure these new positions.
• Skill Development: Almost every sector has transformed in the recent past, and in the course, many labourers have to learn new methods. Trade unions should collaborate with the government and employers who should ensure that the labourers are trained and refurnished with skills that would render them employable in the green economy. This can be particularly useful for young employees who start their careers in their respective organizations.
• Improved Working Conditions: The green economy is not only capable of delivering improved standards for working conditions but also of encouraging environmentally friendly practices at workplaces, and a safe working environment. It is useful to adopt energy-efficient practices in areas like agriculture or construction where the risk of workplace accidents is high for workers.

The move to a green economy is unavoidable, but it should not underline vulnerability among workers to make it harmonious. However, as much progress has been made in the green policies adoption level in Pakistan, it is low in the context of the green economy for all. To start with, trade unions have the responsibility of standing for a just transition for the new green economy to guarantee the job security of the vulnerable employees in the current job market.