May Day 2026: Defending Rights, Reclaiming Power
On this International Workers’ Day, we speak from a world becoming more unequal, more unstable, and increasingly hostile to workers’ rights.
What we face is not a series of isolated crises, but a convergence of forces reshaping the global economy and the balance of power between labour and capital. Geopolitical conflict, democratic backsliding, climate breakdown, rapid technological change, and rising costs of living are placing growing pressure on workers across our sectors.
At the same time, forces opposed to human rights, including labour rights, are gaining ground. Across regions, far-right political movements are promoting deregulation, weakening labour protections, and directly targeting trade unions. The space for organizing is shrinking. Fundamental rights, including freedom of association, collective bargaining, and the right to strike, are increasingly challenged, restricted, or ignored.
In country after country, trade unionists face harassment, detention, and imprisonment simply for defending workers. In Türkiye, union leaders have been detained ahead of May Day mobilisations. In Myanmar, trade unionists continue to face systematic repression under military rule. In Belarus, independent unions have been dismantled and their leaders jailed. These are not isolated incidents. They are part of a broader global pattern of attacks on trade union rights, and on democracy itself.
We are also witnessing the rapid erosion of labour protections through legislative and political reforms. In Argentina, recent measures have sought to weaken collective bargaining structures, expand precarious forms of employment, and restrict the right to strike, undermining long-established protections and rights. These developments are a stark reminder: hard-won gains can be dismantled quickly when political priorities shift away from workers’ interests.
At a time like this, strong international rules are more important than ever. International labour standards remain the cornerstone of decent work. When these standards are undermined, workers everywhere pay the price.
We are also seeing a growing backlash against equality. Attacks on the rights and dignity of women, LGBTI workers, migrants, and other marginalized groups are intensifying. Trade union rights and equality are inseparable, and must be defended together.
Conflict and instability are deepening these challenges. War and militarization are not only humanitarian crises; they are economic shocks. Disruptions to energy, food systems, and supply chains are driving up costs and uncertainty. For workers, this means rising prices, falling real wages, and increasing insecurity.
Nowhere is this more visible than in the global food system. Food insecurity remains widespread, even among those who produce food. This reflects a deeper imbalance of power: growing corporate concentration and financialization allow profits to rise for the few, while workers and small producers bear the cost.
Across sectors, restructuring is accelerating. Outsourcing, fragmentation, and precarious work are becoming more common, weakening collective bargaining and shifting risks onto workers.
Climate change and technological transformation are intensifying these pressures, generating further anxiety for workers. Extreme weather, heat stress, and environmental degradation are already affecting working conditions. At the same time, digitalization and artificial intelligence are being introduced without adequate safeguards, consultation, or negotiation, often increasing surveillance and intensifying work. Workers must have a voice in shaping these changes.
Yet resistance is growing. Across all regions, workers and communities are mobilizing against inequality, rising costs, and attacks on rights. There is a clear demand for a different path—one based on fairness, dignity, and democracy.
In this context, strengthening trade union power is essential. We must organize, grow membership, and deepen international solidarity. We must focus our efforts where we can fight for and win real gains for workers.
The challenges we face are structural. The risk is clear: the costs of war, instability, and economic transformation will continue to be shifted onto workers through wage restraint, job losses, precarious work, and the erosion of rights.
But May Day reminds us: this is not inevitable.
International labour standards, trade union rights, and collective action remain our strongest tools. They are the foundation of a fairer future.
On this May Day, our message is clear: we will defend these rights, we will organize across borders, and we will not accept a world where workers are forced to pay the price.
Kristjan Bragason was appointed Acting General Secretary of the IUF effective 1 February 2025 Before this appointment, Kristjan served as the elected General Secretary of EFFAT-IUF Europe from 2019. Prior to that, he was General Secretary of the Nordic Union of Hotel, Restaurant, Catering and Tourism Workers from 2013. His earlier career includes various roles at the Icelandic IUF-affiliated General Workers Union – SGS, where he ultimately served as Union Director.
IUF is the food, farm, hotels and more global union. From the fields to factories to hotels, restaurants and fast food chains, the IUF organizes, fights and wins for workers across the food chain.