Prof. Aseem Prakash and colleague Prof. Nives Dolšak write in Forbes that the United Auto Workers (UAW) strike against the U.S. auto makers is a result of mismanagement of environmental, social, and governance (ESG) goals.
The UAW strike reveals three conflicts. The first conflict is about dividing profits between the top management and labor. The second conflict is about dividing profits between labor and shareholders. The third conflict is about devoting profits to climate goals as opposed to protecting union jobs and increasing labor compensation. This is a deeper conflict, involving all climate-exposed sectors, both fossil fuel-producing and using sectors.
The scientific case for climate action is very strong. But the political case remains weak, especially if you work in climate-exposed sectors that produce or use fossil fuels. This is because climate policy creates winners and losers. By dropping the win-win narrative, we can think more creatively about how to manage the transition costs in order to avoid massive social and political disruption.
For the full article please link here.