International Labour Organization faces declining global labor rights

The International Labour Organization (ILO) is facing a period where the global standards established in its 1919 Constitution are being undermined. While the original premise of the ILO was to use collective bargaining to prevent revolution and establish an international floor for labor standards, recent data suggests a significant decline in worker protections.

According to the UN’s 2026 Sustainable Development Goals Annual Report, the weakening of labor rights is leaving many workers unable to organize or bargain collectively. The International Trade Union Confederation’s Global Rights Index indicates that in 2026, 80% of 121 surveyed countries restricted collective bargaining, and 87% restricted the right to strike. Additionally, the OECD reports a decades-long decline in union density across member economies.

This erosion is attributed to several factors, including the vertical disintegration of global supply chains, subcontracting, and the rise of digital-platform work. The latter often relies on employment misclassification, which denies legal rights to millions of workers.