Origin’s announcement that it will accelerate closure of Eraring power station to mid 2025 is entirely foreseeable, exposing the Morrison Government’s failure to plan for the economic security of the workforce and the community.
“The challenging economics of coal fired power generation have been obvious to anyone who takes a passing interest for years,” ETU Assistant National Secretary, Michael Wright said.
“But the Morrison Government has failed to plan for the economic security of workers, their families and their communities. They seem content to throw them to the wolves…
“Scott Morrison and Angus Taylor are simply missing in action, at precisely the time workers and their families need security and support. Twelve coal fired power stations have already closed in the last decade, but Scott Morrison keeps acting like everything is fine. Where is the regional transition program?
“These workers have paid taxes, been active in their community and played by the rules. Now Scott Morrison wants them to wear the cost of a global shift.
“Morrison and Taylor are incompetent and negligent. They have their head in the sand and expect workers to bear the brunt.
“A responsible Government would look at the shift to renewable energy generation and storage and understand that it would shift the economics of the power industry. A responsible Government would be taking the opportunity to invest in the communities that are going to be hit hardest. That’s what responsible governments elsewhere have done, why can’t Scott Morrison?”
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