"A Just Transition for U.S. Fossil Fuel Industry Workers", 6 Jul 2016

Both parts of this climate stabilization program will produce large-scale impacts on the employment opportunities for working people as well as on the communities in which they live. The investments in efficiency and clean renewables will generate millions of new jobs. But workers and communities whose livelihoods depend on the fossil fuel industry will unavoidably lose out in the clean energy transition. Unless strong policies are advanced to support these workers, they will face layoffs, falling incomes, and declining public-sector budgets to support schools, health clinics, and public safety. This in turn will increase political resistance to any effective climate stabilization program. It follows that the global climate stabilization project must unequivocally commit to providing generous transitional support for workers and communities tied to the fossil fuel industry...In this article, we propose a Just Transition framework for U.S. workers...The Just Transition program that we have sketched here will require significant levels of government spending in three areas. These include: (1) Retirements at age 64 with full compensation... (2) Fully guaranteed pensions...(3) Community transition...