The State of Global Workers’ Rights

The 10 worst countries for workers in 2025 are Bangladesh, Belarus, Ecuador, Egypt, Eswatini, Myanmar, Nigeria, the Philippines, Tunisia and Turkey, according to the latest report from the International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC) on the Global State of Workers’ Rights. The ITUC assessed 151 countries based on key indicators such as the right to freedom of association, the right to collective bargaining and the right to strike. Countries were ranked on a scale from 1 (sporadic violations of workers' rights) to 5+ (no guarantee of rights due to the breakdown of the rule of law).

In 2025, multiple nations in Africa, the Middle East and Asia appeared in the two lowest categories, signaling that workers’ rights are virtually non-existent in those regions. Several of these countries, such as Afghanistan, Yemen, Libya and Somalia, were identified as having undergone a total breakdown in the rule of law. The Middle East and North Africa ranked as the worst region globally, with an average score of 4.68, followed by the Asia-Pacific region with a score of 4.08.

However, violations of workers' rights are not confined to the Global South. The ITUC report notes that systemic violations also occur in high-income countries like the United States and the United Kingdom. In fact, the "land of the free" ranked worse than its southern neighbor, Mexico, in terms of labor rights protections.

The global picture is alarming: In 2025, 87 percent of countries violated workers' right to strike, a sharp rise from 63 percent in 2014. The report also reveals that workers were subjected to violence in 40 countries and trade unionists were murdered in five countries this year. These were Cameroon, Colombia, Guatemala, Peru and South Africa.

Europe continues to offer comparatively better protection of labor rights. All countries classified in the top tier by the ITUC are located in Europe, which received an average regional score of 2.78 in 2025. Scandinavian countries in particular stand out for their relatively favorable working conditions, though occasional rights violations still occur.