Union Means Democracy: UNI marks International Justice Day 2025 with a call to fight against Authoritarianism

On June 15, International Justice Day, unions around the world are reaffirming a powerful truth: in a world increasingly marked by authoritarianism, repression, and deepening inequality, unions are standing on the frontlines of democracy.

Across the globe, governments are using state power to silence dissent, militarize public life, and attack the rights of workers—especially those who are organized. From Seoul to Los Angeles, workers are pushing back with collective power. Unions are not only bargaining tables—they are pillars of democratic resistance.

“Unions don’t just bargain for better pay—we fight for fairer societies,” said Christy Hoffman, General Secretary of UNI Global Union in a video statement commemorating International Justice Day. “We stand up to exploitation. We speak truth to power. We give working people a voice in shaping their future. This is democracy in action. And it’s needed now more than ever.”

 International Justice Day 2025 comes amid mounting concern about the erosion of civil liberties and the militarization of dissent in multiple countries:

• In the United States, union leader David Huerta, President of SEIU-USWW was injured and detained while observing and documenting a violent ICE raid in Los Angeles.
• In South Korea, the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions (KCTU) organized a mass general strike in response to a failed attempt to impose martial law under former President Yoon Suk Yeol. Their resistance helped protect the country’s democratic institutions.
• In Brazil, unions including CUT and UGT led mobilizations to defend democratic outcomes following former President Bolsonaro’s attempt to overturn the 2022 election.

International Justice Day marks the anniversary of the 1990 Justice for Janitors protest in Los Angeles, when peaceful immigrant workers were violently attacked by police during a march for union rights. Despite the violence, they won. Their courage ignited a global movement that still burns bright.

“The Justice for Janitor campaign lit a fire that has never gone out,”  Hoffman said. “From Los Angeles to Lima, from Johannesburg to Jakarta—workers are still marching. Still organizing. Still demanding justice.”