John Paul Sison
The Global Workers’ Academy on a New Social Contract responded to a global call for justice, rights, and solidarity in the face of widening inequality, climate disruption, digital transformation, and weakened worker protections. Bringing together trade unionists from across regions, the Academy created a space to rethink the foundations of the social contract and co-develop union-led solutions for a fairer future of work.
OBJECTIVES
The Academy aimed to equip participants with the knowledge, tools, and strategic vision to:
Analyse the breakdown of the traditional social contract and the structural drivers of inequality,
Advance inclusive macroeconomic and labour policies,
Reinforce labour protection in emerging work realities, and
Lead advocacy and movement-building toward a renewed social contract anchored in rights, equity, and decent work.
CONTENT
Structured over four weeks of 30-hour online learning, the course covered:
Module 1: Decoding the Social Contract
Module 2: Macroeconomic and Labour Policies for Inclusion
Module 3: Labour Protection and Workers’ Rights
Module 4: Trade Union Action for a New Social Contract
Each module combined self-paced learning with live webinars, practical tools, and interactive forums to support reflection and strategy building.
PEDAGOGICAL APPROACH
The learning journey was action-oriented, multilingual, and participatory. It blended expert inputs, comparative case studies, and peer learning, alongside union-focused tools such as Theory of Change and Results-Based Planning. Participants were guided to move from critical reflection to strategic action.
SKILLS AND COMPETENCIES
Upon completion, participants strengthened their ability to:
analyse socio-economic and labour trends through a worker-centred lens,
apply ILO standards and policy tools in union strategies,
design advocacy plans and union actions for just transitions,
foster inclusive dialogue and shape national and global policy agendas, and
lead transformative union initiatives for a renewed social contract.
NUMBER OF HOURS: 30