Mining and Energy Union (MEU) members in the Latrobe Valley are urging Victorian Senators to urgently pass laws to establish an Authority to support power station workers when they return to Canberra on Monday.
The Net Zero Economy Authority Bill is currently before the Senate, however it did not win the support of cross-benchers in order to pass before Federal Parliament closed for the winter recess in early June.
As parliamentarians are set to return to Canberra, MEU Victorian District President Andy Smith urged Senators to pass the Bill as a top priority.
"A federal authority to provide co-ordinated support for jobs and new industries is urgently needed in the Latrobe Valley, as in our other energy regions nationally.
"The Authority was due to be established in July so it could begin the important work of helping energy communities chart a future.
"We are urging Senators to pass the Net Zero Economy Authority Bill when they return to Canberra. Communities like ours have no time to waste."
MEU members in the Latrobe Valley predominantly work in the regions' power stations and associated mines and projects. Since the closure of Hazelwood Power Station at short notice in 2017, Victorian energy workers have strongly backed federal support and co-ordinated action for workers and communities affected by transition.
MEU member Kyle Palmer, who works at the Hazelwood Rehabilitation Project, says the establishment of the Authority would help ensure the viability of the Latrobe Valley, one of the areas most acutely affected by the energy transition.
"The Net Zero Economy Authority is important to my colleagues and I because we need more certainty in our future."
The Net Zero Economy Authority will have the important twin goals of supporting workers displaced by power station closures into new jobs and co-ordinating investment to drive economic diversification in energy regions.
It will administer workforce plans for power stations facing closure, with the ability to create pooling arrangements with local employers to transfer displaced workers into new jobs.
The legislation also puts obligations on the closing entities to provide certainty and support to employees during the closure process.
Victorian Senate cross-benchers include Steph Hodgins-May, Lidia Thorpe, David Van and Ralph Babet.
