The global tax debate is at a turning point. For decades, multinational corporations have used loopholes and fragmented tax systems to avoid paying their fair share, depriving countries, especially in the Global South, of much-needed resources for public services. Today, trade unions see a new opportunity: to advance the fight for unitary taxation at the United Nations.
Why Unitary Taxation Matters
Unitary taxation would treat multinational corporations as single global entities rather than fragmented subsidiaries scattered across tax havens. This approach ensures that taxes are based on where real economic activity takes place, not where profits are artificially shifted.
For workers, this is more than a technical issue. It’s about reclaiming the revenues that fund hospitals, schools, and essential public services.
Cracks in the OECD Process
The OECD’s much-publicized “pillar 1” global tax reform has stalled. Originally meant to establish new taxing rights for digital services and limit unilateral taxes, it has proven too limited and too fragile to deliver real change. Deadlines have been missed, negotiations are bogged down, and many countries admit the deal is “on life support.”
As Séverine Picard of the Network of Unions for Tax Justice notes, this opens the door for unions and civil society to press the U.N. for more ambitious reforms.
A Worker’s Perspective
At the August 6 U.N. negotiations, I emphasized a simple truth: workers cannot thrive when corporations dodge taxes. In East Africa, where I represent health professionals, underfunded public services are a daily reality.
Governments are leaving billions in potential tax revenue untapped, while defending corporate interests at international forums. As I told delegates:
“You are not defending your workers; you are defending corporations that exist beyond borders.”
Voices of Solidarity
Across regions, unions echoed the urgency:
Patrick Orr (Public Services International) observed that European delegates seemed to be “mourning” pillar 1, realizing its shortcomings.
Bernard Adjei (Ghana) found the U.N. discussions refreshingly open and honest, especially compared to closed-door OECD negotiations.
Paola Tresoldi Manríquez (Chile) highlighted how smaller countries finally have a voice in shaping a tax system that prioritizes public needs over private profit.
A Turning Point for Labour
This moment represents a chance to reframe global tax rules through the lens of justice, solidarity, and public good. For Africa and other regions starved of resources, unitary taxation is not just policy reform, it’s a pathway to strengthening health systems, education, and social protections.
Trade unions are seizing this opening to demand a global tax system that serves people, not profit. The U.N. process must continue to listen, not just to governments, but to the workers whose futures are on the line.
