2025: What are the challenges and opportunities for the trade union movement?

ACTRAV INFO: Looking back at 2024, what are the highlights and achievements of the international trade union movement action?

Luc Triangle: In 2024, the ITUC focused on several key areas that demonstrated the resilience and strength of the global labour movement: democracy, equality, living wages, climate action and trade union organising.

As the largest social movement in the world, trade unions are natural defenders of democracy and human rights worldwide. We stood alongside democratic movements in countries where trade unions faced significant threats. Through international advocacy and campaigns, we highlighted the growing power of individuals undermining democratic institutions and reaffirmed our commitment to defending workers’ rights and freedoms.

Advancing equality and inclusion was another critical area of progress as we worked to combat discrimination and promote policies addressing the needs of underrepresented groups, particularly young people, indigenous peoples, migrant workers, and workers in the care economy. We continued this commitment to inclusion of all working people in the support we provided to unions working on the ground to protect and empower vulnerable workers.

We secured strengthened commitments by governments and businesses to raise wages, and an international consensus on the concept of living wages. Following years of pressure from the ITUC and the Workers’ Group for ILO action in this area, in February we achieved an historic tripartite agreement on the definition of living wages. It underlines the need for governments to raise minimum wage levels towards living wages, calls for strengthened social dialogue and collective bargaining on wages, and mandates the ILO to provide strengthened technical support to countries on improving wage adequacy.

Since this, several multinationals and major international business associations have made commitments to advance living wages. We must now urgently work to ensure that these commitments are followed up with action by governments and businesses. Wages are failing to provide dignified livelihoods to over 660 million workers worldwide – one in five working people – who work but live in poverty.

Despite great challenges, in 2024 unions continued to advance climate action and Just Transition commitments. At COP29 in Azerbaijan, we were disappointed by the lack of sufficient funding and the sidelining of the Just Transition Work Programme. Nevertheless, the ITUC ensured that workers’ concerns and interests were visible by bringing together a delegation of over 80 trade union representatives. Under the forthcoming Brazilian presidency of the COP, we expect to be able to strengthen the visibility of workers’ at these key climate negotiations and deepen our advocacy for Just Transition.

Finally, 2024 was a good year organising and strengthening union power. Even in regions facing threats to democratic governance, we prioritised efforts to win fair wages, social protection, and collective bargaining as part of the New Social Contract. The ITUC also supported organising initiatives to bring informal and platform workers into the labour movement. Unity and collective action remain the most powerful tools for achieving justice and dignity for all workers.

Following years of campaigning by trade unions for strengthened international tax cooperation, the UN General Assembly has finally agreed on the way forward towards a UN Framework Convention on Tax. By improving tax collection mechanisms and ensuring fair taxation of multinational corporations and wealthy individuals, this initiative will provide governments in developing countries with the resources needed to combat poverty, create decent jobs and reduce income inequality, and enhance the livelihoods of workers.

The ITUC’s demands for a New Social Contract were largely reflected in the commitments made by G20 leaders last year to tackle poverty and inequalities, strengthen decent work, extend social protection, ensure occupational safety and health, and improve international tax coordination.

ACTRAV INFO: In June 2025, the informal economy, two standard-settings on the platform economy and biological hazards, and the Committee on the Application of Standards will be at the centre of discussions at the International Labour Conference. What are your expectations regarding these discussions?

Luc Triangle: The 2025 ILC is a key opportunity to address some of the most pressing issues in the world of work. While informal economy and standard-settings on biological hazards and the platform economy are critical, the Committee on the Application of Standards (CAS) plays an indispensable role in upholding labour standards. It is a cornerstone of the ILO’s supervisory system, providing a vital forum for addressing serious violations of workers’ rights and offering our members a platform to present their cases and work toward solutions.

In the standard-setting discussions, a strong outcome on the Convention and Recommendation on biological hazards is essential. We have a solid draft text from the last ILC, now trade unions globally demand a strong Convention and Recommendation to protect workers’ lives and health. It will be the first international legal standard to address biological hazards in the world of work, and welcome progress following the adoption of occupational safety and health (OSH) as a fundamental right at work.

We will also be pushing for progress on tackling informality. It is not a natural phenomenon, but a choice based on deregulation, exploitative business models, and the absence of robust labour protections. With 58% of the global workforce in the informal economy, it is crucial to step up implementation efforts for ILO Recommendation 204, which provides a comprehensive framework for transitioning workers to formality. Trade unions are at the forefront of organising and representing informal workers, advocating for better conditions, and are well aware of the strong gender and migration dimensions of informality. Their work must inform the discussions and strengthen commitments to formalisation that prevents greater informalisation in the economy.

This work is connected to regulating the platform economy. After years of work, we are finally at a critical juncture to address this serious problem that is infecting every part of the economy. The ILO’s mandate is grounded in the principle that labour is not a commodity, yet algorithmic management by platforms strips workers of their humanity, treating them as inputs in a profit-driven system. This model thrives on hyper-inequality and pushes people into precarious work to survive. The ILC must seize this moment to develop a binding standard that ensures all platform workers receive the same protections and rights as all other workers.

ACTRAV INFO: From the ITUC, what are the main challenges and opportunities for unions in 2025?

Luc Triangle: Trade unions and democracy go together; you cannot have one without the other. However, we face challenges that threaten the foundational principles of social justice, fairness and democracy. The rise of authoritarianism is undermining union rights and the broader civil society space. Far-right movements, fuelled by corporate power and misinformation, are taking over and then dismantling the institutions that protect workers. This is encouraged by economic policies that increase inequality through unsustainable debt levels and austerity measures that limit governments’ ability to act in the interests of democracy by investing in social protection and public services.

Environmental and technological transformations also present unique challenges for many workers who face uncertainty, job displacement, and precarious working conditions. Industries undergoing rapid change often fail to account for the social and economic impacts on workers, because workers are not included in the decision making. It highlights the urgent need for just transitions and worker-centred policies.

Despite this, unions are uniquely positioned to seize transformative opportunities. The ITUC in 2025 will campaign “For Democracy That Delivers” for working people. We will campaign with our affiliates to rebuild trust in democratic institutions to ensure that workers’ voices are central to governance. By positioning unions as leaders in advocating for equitable, people-centred policies to hold governments to account for delivering tangible improvements to workers’ realities, we can counteract authoritarianism and corporate exploitation.

Organising remains a powerful tool for change. By amplifying the voices of women, young workers, migrant workers and informal workers, unions can expand their reach and influence, and lead the calls for fair regulation, creation of decent jobs and sustainable economies.

ACTRAV INFO: What are your expectations of the World Social Summit to be held in November 2025? Any specific results for the ITUC regarding this summit?

Luc Triangle: This year, the ILC and the World Social Summit (WSS) provide critical opportunities for unions to advocate for bold policies on decent work, social protection, and labour rights.

The Summit must centre on major global challenges hitting working people now. These include geopolitical instability, accelerating climate change, rising inequality, and the erosion of human rights and democracy. These issues can only be tackled by coordinated action that ensures a just and equitable future for workers.

There is an essential connection between social justice, peace, and democracy, and the Summit must recognise this. The ILO’s Centenary Declaration highlights the importance of sustained action by governments, employers and workers unions to achieve social justice and lasting peace—principles that must underpin the Summit’s agenda. Trust in democratic institutions is at a historic low. The Summit provides an opportunity to rebuild this trust by demanding workers see a fair share of the wealth they create.

The Summit takes place in a challenging context with not only distrust and tension between people and their governments, but also between governments. This tension, however, is caused by decades of unbalanced globalisation with a failed economic and trade model. Rich countries that built up economic and political power on the backs of developing countries, are not doing enough to support these countries to build strong and resilient economies with decent jobs and solid social protection systems.

This is why the outcomes must prioritise the New Social Contract, with SDG 8 at its core. This means commitments to decent, climate-friendly jobs, universal social protection, formalising informal work, and promoting gender equality and inclusion. A just transition for workers affected by climate and digital transformations should be a central focus with bold financing measures to translate them into tangible results. Only this will reduce tensions within and between countries and rebuild trust.

Social dialogue and the role of social partners are key to achieving these goals. Tripartism must be recognised as a fundamental governance tool that ensures the inclusion of workers, employers and governments in the process. Therefore, the ILO must take a leading role in shaping the Summit and implementing its outcomes, leveraging its unique mandate and tripartite framework to drive global social and economic policy coherence.

For the ITUC, success at the Summit will mean embedding these priorities into a clear and actionable plan, ensuring accountability, democratic inclusion and real progress. This is a chance to advance justice, dignity, and equality for all workers, with unions at the forefront of transformative change. Working people expect and deserve good results.

ACTRAV INFO: To conclude, what is your final message to the global labour movement?

Luc Triangle: Looking back at 2024 and looking ahead to 2025, it is clear that the global labour movement is a powerful and unique force for justice, equality, and dignity. In the face of rising authoritarianism, growing inequality, and climate instability, we have proven that solidarity and collective action can deliver meaningful change.

However, the challenges ahead require us to stand together stronger than ever. We must continue to fight for democracy, living wages and decent working conditions, equal treatment for all workers, and the protection of fundamental rights. We must continue to promote a vision of the world that is fairer, sustainable and centred on the interests and ambitions of working people. Whether through advocating for a New Social Contract, pushing for climate justice, or addressing the exploitation of platform and informal workers, unions will be at the forefront of the global fight for equity and inclusion.

My message to the global labour movement is this: stay united, stay bold, and stay determined. The path forward will not always be easy, but together, we have the power to overcome challenges and transform the world of work.