Energy at a “key moment” | News | News

Photo: Steve Forrest

Delegates to the UNISON energy conference gathered in Brighton on Monday to discuss the issues and challenges facing a sector experiencing massive change.

Opening the conference, Lindsay McNaught, board chair of the energy services group (in the photo above), said: “Over the past 12 months, our members have faced a myriad of issues that have significantly impacted their jobs and livelihoods – from the ongoing shift to renewable energy sources to the ever-present threat of job insecurity, the landscape of the energy sector continues to rapidly evolve .

“One of the key issues that has dominated discussions is progress towards net zero and its implications for our members. While we wholeheartedly support the transition to renewable energy, it is critical that this transition is managed in a way that prioritizes the well-being of workers.”

At the same time, Ms. McNaught noted the “groundhog day” feeling surrounding the energy crisis.

“Customers continue to struggle to pay their gas and electricity bills, without any financial support from government and employers,” she said.

“The affordability of energy bills and discussions on social tariffs continue. Overall bills have dropped but are still significantly higher than pre-pandemic levels. The same cost pressures are felt by energy workers in our call centers who have to deal with negative customer reactions.”

Just a transition

In a wide-ranging speech, Secretary-General Christina McAnea told delegates: “This is a really important time for our union, but also a really important time for our planet. We all have a responsibility to consider how we can move towards a greener future that ensures energy security for UK citizens and tackles climate change.

“Our hard-working members are on the front lines dealing with all aspects of the energy crisis. They lead in the research, development and supply of renewable energy, while ensuring sufficient capacity to maintain gas and electricity supplies.

“I am proud that UNISON is doing so much on ecological issues, but it cannot be at the expense of our employees,” she continued. “The changing energy landscape needs a strong voice from the EU to ensure the industry has the skilled workforce it needs for future generations. It also needs a strong voice from the Union to ensure fairness and equality of the transition.”

Ms McAnea said a just transition must include “comprehensive training initiatives to equip the workforce with the skills needed for the jobs of tomorrow” as well as “robust policies that balance technological progress with job protection”.

Safety at work, support for the mental health of call center staff and, of course, remuneration were also key issues we considered going forward.

“The energy sector is at a crucial moment,” she concluded, emphasizing the power of collective bargaining to ensure a just transition.

“Many of us in this room may remember the way the Tories decimated miners who were moving away from coal. There was nothing “fair” about the way this transition was made. It was a plan to destroy not only industry, but also families and communities across the country.

“This is something we will oppose at all costs for our members working in this sector.”

Organizing to win

Photo: Steve Forrest

Many of the proposals submitted to Brighton raised issues with cross-sectoral applications: support for disabled workers struggling with mental health conditions; the need for continued participation of Black members in the service group; addressing the issues neurodiverse women face in the workplace; and embedding LGBT+ equality in the energy sector.

The director of the services group proposed a motion that recognized the importance of UNISON organizing to win the national strategy, with a plan to build a larger and more representative activist base.

Workers in the energy sector often face challenges such as precarious employment in smaller, offshoot companies that are not afforded the same pay and conditions as the parent company, inadequate safety measures and limited bargaining power.

Introducing the motion, Tracey Wainwright, SGE representative on the national executive board (in the photo above) cited achievements such as the Working Time Directive and the increase in holiday pay and annual leave for contract workers as “victories for workers that came about because working people made them a reality through organising, campaigning and negotiating.”

Referring to British Gas’s attempt to sack and rehire staff in 2021, she noted: ‘Due to very strong opposition from UNISON members, we have now negotiated a settlement. This organizing makes working people’s rights a reality. “It was the union campaign that sent a clear message to employers that toxic tactics like fire and rehire will never work.”

The conference called on SGE to develop a winning recruitment and retention strategy, including recruiting new activists, health and safety representatives, environmental representatives and UNISON education representatives.

UNISON President Libby Nolan (above) concluded the conference with a moving message for its delegates. “You are small, but you are mighty,” she said, adding that between members of Energia and WET, “you have the skills and expertise to respond to climate change to be able to make this planet habitable.”

Social energy tariff

On Monday, a large energy group dealt with energy poverty and arguments for a social energy tariff.

Addressing delegates, Matthew Copeland, head of policy and public affairs at the fuel poverty charity National Energy Action, said the crisis triggered by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine two years ago was expected to “not only be a surge, but a shock that will it lasted quite a long time.”

He said that although energy prices had fallen recently, bills for a typical household could rise again to around £1,700 in the autumn and remain at that level for the rest of the decade. Already 5.6 million households in the UK are affected by fuel poverty, and people’s problems with paying their bills are made worse by the debts they incurred two winters ago.

His charity’s plan for a social energy tariff would be:

• as a complement to current market safeguards such as a price cap
• obligatory
• well-targeted, reaching households that really need it.

It already has the support of industry regulator Ofgem, as well as dozens of charities and non-governmental organizations. Copeland estimated it would cost £2 billion a year, with funding options including taxes and contributions from both energy networks and suppliers.

“But these matters require consultation,” he said. “We need the next government to really think about this, in a meaningful way, talk to people, work out what’s best for consumers, what’s feasible for government and suppliers, and actually think about who should be receiving this and how deeply it should be “