Trade unions call for climate action and rejection of Rosebank

Trade union leaders, representatives and activists from across the UK are calling on the Labour government to reject the proposed Rosebank oil field, warning it would undermine climate commitments, fail workers in the long term, and risk contributing to human rights abuses abroad.

Major unions and more than 1,900 additional trade unionists published the open letter on 14 May 2026. This follows a year of union climate action which the TUC backed after COP30.

The unions supporting the letter include:

• UNISON.
• NEU (National Education Union).
• PCS (Public and Commercial Services Union).
• CWU (Communication Workers Union).
• UCU (University and College Union).
• Equity.
• FBU (Fire Brigades Union).
• BFAWU (Bakers, Food and Allied Workers Union).
• IWGB (Independent Workers Union of Great Britain).
• UVW (United Voices of the World).

The unions represent firefighters, ambulance staff, network management in gas sector, teachers, nurses, cleaners, civil servants and more. They stress that Rosebank is a ‘climate-wrecking project’ set to produce CO2 equivalent to 70 percent of UK annual emissions. This makes it incompatible with the UK’s obligations under the Paris Climate Agreement.

The signatories also argue that approving Rosebank will stall the UK’s energy transition and leave Scotland’s oil and gas workers at risk.

Jobs in the industry have more than halved over the past decade. To date, Rosebank’s rig was built in Dubai, then retrofitted in Norway – something which unions have called a betrayal.

The trade unionists behind the letter stress that the UK must focus on the long-term wellbeing of workers. It needs to invest in the clean energy industries of the future, creating secure, long-term jobs to support workers to transition.

Rosebank – huge risk, negligible benefit

Rosebank has faced increasingly intense political and public opposition in recent years, given the field will do nothing to provide energy security or lower bills in the UK at a time when the nation gears up for yet another conflict-driven price shock.

Despite repeated claims since Trump and Netanyahu’s war on Iran began, new oil and gas fields like Rosebank will not reduce the UK’s reliance on gas imports. In fact, even if Rosebank gets the green light, it will only reduce our national dependency by 1%.

The field’s reserves are mainly oil for export, set to sell on the international market. They will not power British cars or industry, with the profits benefiting Shell and Norway’s sovereign wealth fund while the UK taxpayer effectively covers most of the development costs thanks to huge tax breaks.

The project could also send over £200m towards Delek Group – an Israeli fuel conglomerate that the UN flagged for human rights violations in Palestine. The Scottish Palestine Solidarity Campaign has warned the UK government that it risks breaching its own obligations under international laws on these grounds, should it allow Rosebank to go ahead.

With a government decision due over the next couple of months, trade unionists are urging more members and organisations to sign on. You can read the letter in full here.

Andrea Egan, general secretary of UNISON, commented:

With the Iran war, UNISON members are more worried than ever about their energy bills and transport costs. New oil fields won’t do anything to reduce the prices they pay in the coming months; they will delay action for real energy security and climate justice through a shift to renewables.

At the same time, the likelihood that Rosebank will lead to significant losses for the UK Treasury, while corporations, including one linked to Israeli war crimes, pocket billions, should outrage us all. I know it outrages public service workers.

The government needs a genuine focus on how we get affordability now, get a safe and sustainable future, and get real just transition for workers.

This starts with investing in those public services that pave the way to a low carbon economy and recognising that jobs in Education, Health, Social Care alongside the many other sectors UNISON organise in are inherently Green jobs.

That’s why UNISON says no to Rosebank.

Steve Wright, general secretary of the FBU, said:

Firefighters are on the front line dealing with the wildfires and floods which are more frequent and dangerous because of climate change. There is no option for a safe future other than a transition away from fossil fuels.

We also know that companies extracting oil and gas from Rosebank would sell their product at the highest price on the global market to maximise profits. So the way to shield the UK from future oil price shocks is not North Sea drilling but a transition to renewable energy.

Sarah Woolley, general secretary of the Bakers, Food and Allied Workers Union, commented:

Whether it’s working in kitchens in heatwaves or seeing climate change contribute to rising food prices, our members can see that climate change is a trade union issue.

The government can choose to expand North Sea drilling by approving Rosebank and funnelling more money to oil company shareholders, or they can focus on solutions to tackle the climate crisis, create jobs and ensure our energy is affordable.

Featured image via the Canary