Climate crisis threatens 400m garment workers

Abbas Nazil and Abdullahi Lukman

More than 400 million garment workers worldwide are facing the direct impacts of climate change, including extreme heat, floods, factory shutdowns, and wage losses that threaten their livelihoods.

Labour unions warn that accelerating decarbonisation, automation, and digitisation in global supply chains are worsening job insecurity for workers who already endure low wages, unsafe working conditions, heat stress, and weak social protection.

IndustriALL Global Union, together with IndustriALL Europe and the International Trade Union Confederation, launched a Just Transition Manifesto for the textile and garment sector to ensure climate and digital transformation do not harm workers.

The manifesto was introduced during a virtual side session at a garment forum and calls for binding obligations on companies, responsible purchasing practices, and stronger corporate accountability.

Diana Junquera-Curiel, IndustriALL Energy and Just Transition director, emphasized that workers must not pay for the green transition.

“The responsibility for a greener economy must be shared fairly by governments, employers, and brands, not placed on those already most vulnerable,” she said.

Judith Kirton-Darling, General Secretary of IndustriALL Europe, added, “Just Transition means ‘Nothing about us, without us’. Workers must have the rights, capacities, and resources to anticipate and manage the change.”

NatureNews notes that the manifesto stresses that workers’ rights, living wages, occupational health and safety, and gender equality must remain central to climate action and industrial reform.

Union leaders argue that climate policies developed without worker participation deepen inequality and fail to address the realities faced by people employed in factories across global supply chains.

The document demands worker-led decision-making through stronger union involvement and structured social dialogue at national and international levels.

It also urges governments to promote inclusive labour negotiations while employers and global brands take responsibility for protecting workers during economic transitions.

The Just Transition Manifesto for the textile and garment sector is a rallying cry for a fair and equitable shift towards sustainable production models.

Launched by IndustriALL Global Union, IndustriALL Europe, and the International Trade Union Confederation, it demands a transformation that prioritizes people and the planet.

At its core, the manifesto seeks to address the devastating impacts of climate change, automation, and digitalization on garment workers, who face low wages, unsafe conditions, and job insecurity.

To achieve this, it calls for worker-led decision-making, binding obligations on companies, living wages, and social protection.

The manifesto’s key demands include strengthening union involvement, ensuring corporate accountability, guaranteeing fair wages and occupational health, prioritizing women’s rights, and providing support for workers transitioning to new roles.

Its goals are ambitious: create decent work opportunities, address climate change with social justice, and transform the garment industry to prioritize people and the planet.

By championing a just transition, the manifesto offers a vision of a more equitable and sustainable future for garment workers worldwide.