Major trade unions are mounting fierce resistance against European Union proposals to dilute key corporate sustainability laws, warning that the changes could strip away vital protections for workers worldwide.
IndustriALL Global Union and industriAll European Trade Union have issued a strongly worded open letter calling on lawmakers to reject pressure to weaken corporate human rights due diligence rules. The unions represent millions of manufacturing, energy, and mining workers across industries fundamental to global economies.
The controversy centres on the EU’s Omnibus Directive Package I and II, which propose revisions to two cornerstone pieces of sustainability legislation.
The Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive and the Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive currently require companies to conduct thorough assessments of their human rights and environmental impacts.
“Weakening HRDD laws will leave workers exposed and unprotected,” said Kemal Özkan, assistant general secretary of IndustriALL Global Union. “Strong, legally binding HRDD is key to rebuilding trust, strengthening democracy and ensuring fundamental rights are upheld in a fairer global economy.”
The proposed changes, framed under a “competitiveness” agenda, would substantially roll back corporate sustainability and reporting obligations. Union leaders argue this would discourage businesses already implementing these standards through workplace dialogue and other established mechanisms.
Many companies have embraced the existing legislation and are actively working to implement its requirements. Watering down these tools would represent a serious setback for these industry leaders, the unions argue.
The pushback has gained support from international bodies. The UN Working Group on Business and Human Rights has warned that the proposed packages do not align with the UN Guiding Principles of Business and Human Rights and risk undermining important progress on corporate accountability.
Business sentiment also appears to contradict the need for weaker rules. A survey of 1,350 German business decision-makers revealed strong support for due diligence regulations, with 69 per cent rating them as important and many reporting competitive benefits from compliance.
Paradoxically, more than half of the surveyed businesses reported that the proposed Omnibus changes would introduce confusion and delay investments. This suggests that weakening the rules could harm rather than help competitiveness.
“This is a wrong signal to workers and business in the current global context,” said Judith Kirton-Darling, industriAll Europe’s general secretary. “We condemn the proposals since they are a direct attack on workers’ rights and corporate accountability. And send a very worrying message to workers.”
The union opposition comes at a critical time for global labour rights. According to the 2025 ITUC Global Rights Index, workers’ rights are deteriorating worldwide, with Europe and the Americas recording their worst scores ever.
The timing of the proposed weakening has particularly alarmed union leaders. They argue that strengthening rather than diluting corporate accountability measures is essential in the current global context.
IndustriAll Europe and industriALL Global Union are demanding that European policymakers abandon plans to weaken the two directives. Instead, they are calling for these laws to be strengthened to ensure robust protection of workers and communities everywhere.
The battle over these directives represents a broader struggle over the balance between corporate competitiveness and social responsibility in an increasingly interconnected global economy.
This is the staff account of Social Europe.