Currently, Bangladesh tops the list of the 10 worst countries with the most systematic violations of labor rights.

On Monday, the International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC) released its 2025 Global Rights Index, placing Ecuador third on a list of the 10 worst countries for workers’ rights violations.

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Published annually since 2014, the study reported a global rollback of labor rights and a decline in working conditions worldwide.

“If this rate of deterioration continues, in 10 years not a single country in the world will have the highest rating for respecting workers’ rights. We are facing a global scandal,” warned ITUC Secretary Luc Triangle.

The Index compiled data from 151 countries and is based on 97 indicators drawn from international conventions and International Labour Organization (ILO) case law.

The ITUC reported that trade unionists were murdered in countries including Colombia, Peru and Guatemala. It also cited worsening conditions in Argentina, Italy, Costa Rica and Panama compared with the previous year.

Alarming Decline Across the Americas

The Americas received a score of 3.68 out of 5 on the Index’s barometer measuring labor rights violations — the region’s worst rating since 2014. The report highlighted that Argentina, Costa Rica and Panama saw their scores drop to 4 out of 5, which the ITUC defines as “systematic violations” of workers’ rights.

Among the 10 worst countries with the most systematic violations of labor rights are Bangladesh, Belarus, Ecuador, Egypt, Eswatini, the Philippines, Myanmar, Nigeria, Tunisia and Turkey.

On the other end of the scale, the countries that made the most progress in improving labor conditions were Australia, Oman and Mexico. However, these nations still experience “regular violations of rights.”

Labor Conditions Worsen in Europe

Although Europe remains the least repressive region for workers, the ITUC noted that, for the third consecutive year, labor conditions have worsened — reaching their lowest point since 2014. This “is an alarming sign that the erosion of labor rights across the continent is accelerating.”

The report found that more than half of European countries (56%) violated the right to collective bargaining, and 54% of countries denied or restricted workers’ access to justice in 2025 — a significant increase from 32% in 2024.

Nearly three-quarters of European countries (73%) violated the right to strike, and nearly a third (32%) arrested or detained workers. The region scored 2.78 out of 5 on the Index’s labor rights violation barometer, worsening from 2.73 in 2024. This reflects “widespread violations of rights across the region,” the ITUC said.

The study also warned that “the rise of far-right political parties and movements across Europe has increased the risk of further erosion of workers’ and trade unions’ rights,” with specific reference to the governments of Finland and Italy.

The 2025 Global Rights Index report was released on the same day the International Labour Conference (ILC) opened in Geneva, Switzerland.

teleSUR/ JF

Source: EFE – ITUC

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