The Circular Buildings Coalition (CBC) has published a new briefing highlighting the challenges and necessary actions to ensure a just transition for construction workers in Europe as the industry moves toward further integration circular economy practices. In particular, the report explores how increasing the use of secondary building materials and focusing on renovation, retrofitting and adaptive reuse will impact workers and who need to be involved to:
The construction industry is at the centre of the EU’s commitment to environmental and social sustainability, whereas the circular economy offers practical strategies to fulfil these pledges. The CBC’s earlier report—Four circular building pathways towards 2050—outlined the following pathways for a circular built environment in Europe:
The CBC’s latest briefing zooms in on the first two pathways and examines their implications for the European construction industry.
Building with the Right Materials will increase demand for workers in secondary material sourcing, urban mining, procurement, and quality assurance. It will also require new expertise in material recovery, testing, certification, and digital tracking systems. The use of secondary materials adds complexity to construction, making quality control, adaptive techniques, and specialised handling more important than ever.
The Build Nothing New strategy prioritises renovation, retrofitting and adaptive reuse over new construction. It will shift the industry toward more labour-intensive projects, requiring workers with diverse and adaptable skills. These types of projects can expose workers to deteriorated structures and hazardous materials such as asbestos. To ensure worker safety, stronger protocols and targeted protections will be necessary.
Several challenges stand in the way of a just transition to circular construction for workers. The industry remains highly fragmented, with long and often opaque subcontracting chains that leave workers vulnerable to risks. Additionally, there is a lack of legally binding circular economy targets, as well as insufficient investment in skills development and training infrastructure. Lastly, circular business models, which are more labour-intensive, continue to struggle against traditional linear approaches that prioritise cost efficiency over sustainability.
To address these challenges, the briefing outlines key measures that governments, social partners, educators and other EU institutions need to consider when shaping policies and implementation strategies. These include integrating social standards into EU-wide circular economy guidelines, fostering social dialogue to ensure just transition planning, and investing in workforce skills and occupational safety and health (OSH).
