The Labour 20 (L20) group of unions has warned that the agenda emerging under the United States’ G20 Presidency risks increasing inequalities and undermining democracy and workers’ rights.
The G20 must stand for a global economy that delivers decent jobs, social justice and shared prosperity. Any attempt to weaken democratic institutions or workers’ protections in favour of billionaires and big corporations will only deepen inequality, instability and undermine democracy.
Right now, working people need their governments to tackle inequality, climate change and technological disruption – not fuel them with deregulation, fossil fuel expansion and unchecked corporate power.
The L20 launched its 2026 engagement with an online gathering of trade union leaders in early February, and subsequently hosted an event to strengthen efforts to address inequalities, based on the outcomes of the G20 Global Inequality Report.
Under the theme: ‘Reducing inequalities, putting people at the centre of the G20’, it gathered trade unionists, members of the G20 Extraordinary Committee of Independent Experts on Global Inequality, the labour ministers of Brazil and Spain, and the South African G20 Sherpa, as well as the ILO and Civil Society Organisations (CSOs). The participants delivered a strong message on the crucial role of labour in tackling inequalities and the importance of advancing an International Panel on Inequality.
In its statement to G20 governments, the L20 – representing workers across the world’s largest economies – called on leaders to defend democracy, the international rule of law and to promote inclusive growth.
The labour movement cautioned that policies promoted under the US presidency – centred on deregulation, fossil fuel expansion and the interests of big tech corporations – threaten to deepen inequality and weaken democratic institutions.
The L20 emphasised that the G20 must promote:
- A democratic, people-centred agenda capable of addressing the major challenges facing working people worldwide.
- Rights-based regulation to protect workers, consumers and communities, and to ensure democratic accountability in markets.
- A Just Transition to renewable energy that guarantees decent jobs and protects workers’ livelihoods while tackling climate change.
- People-centred digitalisation, with strong rules on artificial intelligence and technology to protect jobs, rights, privacy and democracy.
- Fair and living wages, strengthened collective bargaining and universal social protection.
- Fair taxation, debt relief and stronger multilateral cooperation to reduce inequality and support sustainable development.
- Investment in quality public services and education to ensure inclusive growth and prepare societies for the future of work.
The L20 also warned that sidelining engagement groups, including trade unions, and ignoring key issues such as employment, development, health and education weakens the G20’s ability to respond to global challenges.
The Trump administration began its second term by dismantling the key agencies that protected workers’ rights around the globe. Now, as the United States hosts the G20, it has taken almost all labor and employment issues off the agenda. But the labor movement will not abandon our obligation to workers. The L20 will carry on this essential work: upholding the commitments G20 governments have made in previous years and building towards a stronger multilateral system that delivers for all working people.
The G20 Leaders’ Summit is scheduled to take place in Miami on 14–15 December 2026.
