Chapter 6: The Green Representative and the Ecological Dimension of Workplace Politics

This chapter outlines the opportunities, tensions and potential future direction in the extension of union workplace activism on environmental issues in the UK. Green reps emerged in the early 2000s when broader union-management politics tended to be framed in terms of partnership and their activities centred on workplace emissions reduction and energy savings. More recently, the green rep agenda has broadened to include aspects of climate justice and longer-term socio-ecological interests. With this extension of the environmental agenda, the potential for a fragmentation in worker representation on this theme is evident. Yet a potentially unifying frame has developed around the collective action needed to address climate change with policy that considers class-based interests. Overall, the environmental agenda remains fragile, not least within unions, however, some evidence emerges of more transformational campaigns in alliance with community and environmental organisations that navigate a positive articulation between the ‘jobs vs climate’ debate. While built on fragile foundations the green rep role has persisted within the UK movement for over a quarter of the century. It remains to be seen how new institutional forms can be sustained within the changing spaces of ecological politics.