Trade unions have warned Scotland is losing both green energy jobs and vital oil and gas roles, as concerns grow over the future of the North Sea workforce.
A new report from the STUC found 1,100 jobs have been lost in Scotland’s low carbon and renewable energy economy, alongside a record trade deficit of £569 million. The body said Scotland is failing to secure manufacturing work from the renewables build-out.
At the same time, GMB Scotland warned the “rushed and unplanned rundown” of North Sea production risks an “industrial catastrophe”.
Tom Carr-Pollock, a GMB delegate, said: “The rushed and unplanned rundown of North Sea production has already cost thousands of jobs, offshore and on, and the ongoing failure to protect those jobs while creating new opportunities is abject.”
He added: “The UK can, and must, continue producing oil and gas while urgently building renewables capacity and infrastructure.”
STUC general secretary Roz Foyer said: “These jobs losses are deplorable and it’s entirely indicative of both the Scottish and UK Government’s utterly directionless approach to industrial strategy.”
She added: “Anything less will continue to let Scotland’s workers down and the communities that uphold them.”