JOEL Fitzgibbon's constituents concede their federal MP is in a difficult position.
On one hand, he is a member of a political party trying to tackle climate change. On the other, he represents an electorate where a large percentage of the population are reliant on the coal industry.
"I think he is well out of step with what needs to be done as far as climate change," Broke's Suzanne Little, 51, said of Mr Fitzgibbon while shopping in Cessnock on Tuesday.
"Coal is not the future.
"That's fairly controversial around this area, I'm sure, but there's ways to change over to renewables without causing too much disruption and I think they should get on with doing that.
"I've got a lot of friends whose livelihoods depend on the coal industry, so I'd like to see a transition with as least pain as possible."
Mr Fitzgibbon, who stood down from the frontbench on Tuesday citing the party's direction on climate and energy, said if Labor was to win government again it needed to make sure it was appealing to regional voters reliant on traditional energy sources.
"At the last election, Joel got a very nasty shock that I'm pretty sure made him reconsider his position on a few things," Cessnock's Danny Gibson, 62, said.
"The One Nation candidate, he works in the mining game and got a lot of support. He was speaking out about the need to keep people employed.
"I don't think [Joel] can be a [shadow] minister and speak openly in disagreement with the [party], so I think that's why he's resigned - so he can speak his mind and stand up for his constituents.
"It's a difficult position for someone to be in.
"You could be cynical and think he's only acting out of self-interest, but you could think the other way - he's had a bit of a wake-up call and he's actually got to look after his constituents."
Cessnock tradesman Sam Boesen, 28, said he backed Mr Fitzgibbon's suggestion that Labor had to do more to appeal to its traditional blue-collar voter base.
"I do think the Labor policies are a bit disjointed and there's a bit of infighting," he said.
"They have to make a deal within the party and come to an agreement before they can take a step forward. I think they are heading in the wrong direction and that's why he has stepped down."
Retiree Richard McLoughlin, 72, said he "fully agreed" with Mr Fitzgibbon's stance on the party's direction.
"The Labor party is starting to go more Green, they may as well call themselves the Green party," he said.
"I used to vote for them all the time, but I don't vote for them now. I believe in renewable energy, but not at the expense of shutting industries right down. Until they lose the Green attitude ... I won't vote for them."
