Nigeria listed among world’s worst violators of workers’ rights – ITUC report

Nigeria has been named among the worst countries in the world for violations of workers’ rights, joining nine others in a list published in the 2025 Global Rights Index by the International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC).

Alongside Nigeria, other countries flagged for systemic abuse of workers’ rights include Bangladesh, Belarus, Ecuador, Egypt, Eswatini, Myanmar, the Philippines, Tunisia, and Türkiye.

The report paints a bleak picture of the global state of labour rights, warning that respect for workers is in sharp decline across all continents. According to the ITUC, workers’ rights are “in free fall,” with the 2025 Index showing the worst global scores since its inception in 2014.

Just seven countries earned the top rating of 1 for their respect for workers’ rights — a steep decline from 18 a decade ago. In contrast, 51 countries, nearly one-third of those assessed, were rated at the lowest levels of 5 and 5+, indicating no guarantee of rights.

“If this trajectory continues,” the report warned, “no country will retain a top-tier score within the next ten years.”

The Index found that conditions worsened in three of the five global regions assessed, with the Americas recording a dismal score of 3.68 and Europe falling to 2.78 — both the worst ever for those regions. Notably, Europe, once a leader in labour protections, has seen its score plummet from 1.84 in 2014, marking the steepest decline globally over the past decade.

The Middle East and North Africa region ranked as the worst in the world for working people, with an average rating of 68. In this region, 87 per cent of countries were found to have violated the right to strike, while 80 per cent breached the right to collective bargaining.

More broadly, the Index revealed that access to justice for workers is being eroded at an alarming rate, with 72 per cent of countries now restricting workers’ ability to seek legal redress — the worst level on record.

Reacting to the findings, ITUC General Secretary, Luc Triangle, blamed decades of neoliberal policies and deregulation for the deterioration.

“The 2025 ITUC Global Rights Index exposes the consequences of the betrayal of the post-World War II system, which was built on democracy, trade union rights, and justice,” he said. “Governments have spent decades neglecting workers while collaborating in a system that has collapsed their rights. This betrayal has disenfranchised millions, fuelled extremism and authoritarianism, and enabled a billionaire coup that now threatens democracy itself.”

The ITUC urged governments to reverse the trend by recommitting to labour protections, restoring collective bargaining rights, and enforcing justice for workers around the globe.