July 8, 2008 - Unite, the British labor union representing workers in the electronics and IT sectors, says it should have the right to access environmental performance data for the companies served by its members.

In a survey of its 10,000 members, the union found that 83% believed that their workplace wasted energy and resources and 87% believed unions should be involved in designing and implementing measures that help to improve the impact of workplaces on the environment.

"It makes perfect sense that unions should challenge employers to take action on climate change and the environment," says Peter Skyte, Unite's national officer. "No employer will make money from a dead planet and no worker will gain from being part of a poisoned population."

Workers are increasingly becoming more interested in the environmental record of their employer, or potential employers. A whopping 92% of recent college graduates say they want to work for a green company, according to a recent survey from MonsterTrak.

The energy-hungry IT industry in particular has come under scrutiny recently, both for its rising environmental impact and, paradoxically, for its potential to reduce global greenhouse gas emissions.

Employees are a company's most important stakeholders, according to green-business expert and SLM advisor Andrew Winston. Read more about how companies are engaging workers in their sustainability efforts here.