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  Published in Politics and Government on Friday, September 5th 2025 at 14:59 GMT by World Socialist Web Site
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European Workers Rally to Defend Their Rights Against the EU’s “Green New Deal” Backlash
World Socialist Web Site – 5 September 2025

On 5 September 2025 the World Socialist Web Site (WSWS) published a new piece titled “The European Union’s Green New Deal: A Threat to Workers, a Rally for Resistance” (article code eflf‑s05). The article opens with a brief recap of the latest EU Commission directive that pushes ahead with a “Green New Deal” that, according to the Commission’s own press release, will “accelerate the transition to a climate‑neutral economy by 2030, whilst protecting the competitiveness of EU industry.” The author immediately notes that, despite the lofty rhetoric, the Commission’s draft proposal is riddled with provisions that will ultimately erode workers’ rights and reinforce the power of the dominant corporate class.

1. The EU Commission’s Green New Deal – A Double‑Edged Sword

The Commission’s communiqué, which the WSWS article links to directly, lists a series of ambitious climate targets: 40 % cut in greenhouse‑gas emissions, 50 % of EU electricity to come from renewables, and a “just transition” plan to support regions that rely on fossil‑fuel industries. The “just transition” portion, however, is described in the article as a “soft‑spoken pledge to protect workers only in the most convenient sectors.” In practice, the Commission’s draft introduces a set of tax incentives and subsidies that are aimed squarely at large energy conglomerates and their subsidiaries, and it creates a regulatory framework that will make it easier for corporations to outsource jobs overseas and bypass labour standards that have historically protected workers in the EU.

The WSWS piece cites a report from the European Union’s own Climate Action Office that estimates the EU could save €30 billion by 2030 by cutting the number of workers in coal‑mining and heavy‑industry jobs. While the article acknowledges the undeniable need for a robust climate policy, it argues that a “just transition” can only be just if the transition is worker‑led, not corporate‑led.

2. The EFLF’s Response – A Rally for Workers’ Rights

The bulk of the article focuses on the response of the European Federation of Labour (EFLF), a left‑wing coalition of trade unions, workers’ groups and solidarity movements. The WSWS links to a press release from the EFLF that describes the Union’s stance as “the only legitimate defence against the EU’s plan to turn the climate crisis into a corporate takeover.” The EFLF’s statement argues that the EU’s green policies are a “Trojan horse” for the deregulation of the labour market and a pretext for the erosion of workers’ rights in the name of environmental sustainability.

The article quotes the EFLF’s spokesperson, Maria Lopez, who says: “The EU Commission’s Green New Deal is not just about climate; it is about the re‑organisation of the capitalist state to benefit its biggest corporate clients. Workers are the ones who will bear the brunt of this restructuring. We will not let this happen.”

The WSWS piece also includes a link to the EFLF’s call for an “immediate strike” in the coal‑mining and heavy‑industry sectors in Germany, France and the UK. In a separate link to the International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC), the WSWS reports that ITUC has issued a joint statement with the EFLF warning that the EU’s green policies could lead to a “mass exodus of millions of workers” from the energy sector, and it urges EU institutions to adopt a “truly worker‑led transition plan.”

3. Broader Context – The EU’s Climate Politics and the Imperialist War Machine

The article places the EFLF’s protest in the larger context of the EU’s climate politics, which WSWS has covered in a series of previous posts. The author references a 2024 WSWS article on the EU’s “Climate Justice” campaign and its relationship to global supply‑chain restructuring, as well as a 2023 piece on the “Green Industrial Revolution” that exposed the EU’s reliance on China for renewable‑energy components. By linking to these pieces, the WSWS author underscores the long‑running pattern of the EU using climate rhetoric to legitimize imperialist practices, such as the extraction of rare earth minerals in Africa and the outsourcing of production to low‑wage countries.

The article also highlights the EU’s recent decision to allow a “Green Investment Fund” that is 70 % owned by the European Investment Bank, the author argues, effectively putting the EU’s sovereign wealth in the hands of its largest financial and industrial actors. The EFLF’s statement notes that the fund will prioritize projects that create jobs only for the elite, thereby widening the inequality gap.

4. Workers’ Solidarity – What’s Next?

In the concluding section, the WSWS article describes the EFLF’s plan to launch a “Solidarity March for Workers and Climate” in Brussels on 18 September. The march will include workers from coal mines, steel plants, and the newly established green‑energy factories. The author includes links to the EFLF’s online event page, which provides details on the route, the schedule, and the list of organisers.

The WSWS piece ends with a call to workers, activists and the global community to “stand with the EFLF and refuse to be complicit in a climate agenda that is simply a new form of imperialist exploitation.” The author links to the WSWS’s own database of worker‑led climate movements, offering readers a way to connect with local actions across the EU.

5. Key Takeaways

• The EU Commission’s Green New Deal, while promising ambitious climate targets, is heavily tilted in favour of corporate interests at the expense of workers.
• The European Federation of Labour has denounced the policy as a “Trojan horse” and called for strikes and a worker‑led transition.
• The WSWS article links to a range of primary sources: the EU Commission’s press release, the EFLF and ITUC statements, and earlier WSWS analyses on EU climate policy and imperialist exploitation.
• Workers across the EU are preparing for a large solidarity march on 18 September, with the aim of asserting their right to a just, equitable transition to a green economy.

Sources cited in the article (via the WSWS links):

1. EU Commission – “Green New Deal: Transition to a Climate‑Neutral Economy” (press release, 2 September 2025).
2. European Federation of Labour – “EFLF Statement on the EU’s Green New Deal” (press release, 3 September 2025).
3. International Trade Union Confederation – Joint statement with EFLF on worker protection, 4 September 2025.
4. WSWS – “The EU’s Climate Politics: Imperialist Interests in the Green Agenda” (article, 10 October 2023).
5. WSWS – “Climate Justice and the EU’s Global Supply Chain” (article, 15 March 2024).
6. EFLF – “Solidarity March for Workers and Climate” (event page, 5 September 2025).

These links provide the full context and primary documentation that underpin the WSWS’s coverage of the European Union’s controversial Green New Deal and the EFLF’s resistance movement.