The latest report prepared by Sustainlabour and the International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC), “Ecosystems, economy and employment”, has focused on employment and its conjunction with biodiversity. The results of the study, prepared in collaboration with the Biodiversity Foundation, are presented on October 19 within the framework of the XI Conference of the Parties (COP11) to the Convention on Biological Diversity.

Thus, the report indicates that the creation of green jobs must be based on the correct management of the environment and biodiversity by companies, so that sustainable development is achieved that guarantees the preservation of species.

Among the most outstanding data of the text is that, at the European level, 7% of jobs are related to biodiversity, a total of 14.6 million jobs, a figure that rises to 55% if we look at jobs in environmental services in the European Union. In developing countries, jobs related to these services account for 84% of the labour market. As an example, Sustainlabour highlights the forestry sector with 10 million potential jobs or organic farming, which generates a third more jobs than conventional farming.

The report also explains the need to address other particularities such as the improvement that the development of sustainable and responsible production entails in terms of quality and working conditions and in relation to gender and social equality. To this end, it is necessary to establish new active policies on the labour market, with actions such as green taxation, social dialogue, decision-making based on the protection of biodiversity or the strengthening of social protection mechanisms.