Nurse Erin Killion-Delcastillo invites nurses and midwives to join the Hunter Jobs Alliance

On 27 October 2020, The Climate of the Nation report was released, showing that 71 per cent of Australians think our country should be a world leader on climate action.

Are you one of these people? Have you ever wondered how you can help, beyond changing your light bulbs and moving your super out of fossil fuel investments? The good news is that NSWNMA members now have a unique opportunity to help shift the debate on climate change in this country.

Around the world, communities have successfully transitioned away from the fossil fuel industry, while building up alternative avenues of employment and retraining employees so that no worker is left behind. However, this doesn’t happen without a plan that involves workers at the outset. When left up to the market, mining companies routinely make a quick exit from dependent communities, without any thought for the future livelihoods of their employees. It is only when unions and government advocate for workers that they are protected from the shocks of the fossil fuel market.

We already know that the age of coal is coming to an end. Enter the Hunter Jobs Alliance. The HJA is a newly formed organisation, uniting unions with environmental groups who want to see a plan for low-carbon jobs in the Hunter Valley. Workers in the Hunter urgently need a plan that will protect their livelihoods, and work on this plan needs to start right now.

As NSWNMA members, we are eligible to join the HJA and start the outreach to coal workers and communities, helping to formulate and fight for a transition plan.