G7 labour ministers met on 9 June on the sidelines of the International Labour Conference to discuss coordinated responses to critical challenges including the development of artificial intelligence, extreme weather events, and decent work deficits in critical minerals supply chains. The Labour 7 (L7) welcomed the French Presidency’s ambition to promote a level playing field to tackle social dumping and ensure fair competition.
The L7 valued the opportunity to develop joint proposals with the Business 7 (B7) for the G7. Through difficult negotiations, the L7 and B7 agreed two joint texts – one on a level playing field for decent work, and another on occupational safety and health in the face of extreme weather. While ministers did not formally adopt the texts, the L7 considers that the social partners’ work provides a strong basis for the G7 to build on.
The joint contribution on a level playing field calls for renewed action built on the fundamental principles and rights at work set out in the 1998 ILO Declaration – from freedom of association to the elimination of child labour and forced labour. The L7 contends that systemic violations of these rights are a threat to workers everywhere. Trade unions emphasise the need for the G7 to go further by incorporating the full range of policy levers – trade, industrial policy, public procurement, development cooperation and responsible business conduct.
The second joint text draws on the ILO’s tripartite meeting of experts on extreme weather and sets out guidelines which underline the role of collective bargaining and social dialogue in adapting workplaces and designing appropriate policies to protect workers and their livelihoods. Trade unions highlight that 2.41 billion workers are exposed to excessive heat each year, causing some 22.85 million non-fatal occupational injuries, and demand that OSH frameworks be adapted to address such risks through prevention, social protection and social dialogue.
The L7 commended the adoption of the G7 toolkit on the eradication of forced labour in critical minerals supply chains, but stressed that more remains to be done. Real wages in most G7 countries still lag behind their pre-Covid-19 levels, and the energy shock flagged in the OECD’s Economic Outlook is set to erode them further. The ITUC’s 2026 Global Rights Index, meanwhile, has recorded its worst results since the survey began – with the right to strike violated in 87% of countries and collective bargaining restricted in 80%.
Ministers must turn the social partners' work into firm commitments, starting with a target to end in-work poverty and a roadmap to strengthen collective bargaining. We have put concrete proposals on the table, and we will keep pressing G7 members to engage with them.
The erosion of workers' rights has reached the heart of our democracies, and G7 countries are no exception. Defending democracy means defending the freedoms that sustain it, including democratic trade union rights, at home and worldwide.
The L7 calls for the level playing field agenda to be taken up by G7 Leaders at the Évian Summit on 15-17 June, and urges the G7 to carry these efforts forward and reconvene the Employment Working Group – a goal the L7 will pursue under future presidencies, including with the United States’ in 2027.
