27ª Reunião do Comitê Diretor da ISP – Comunicado

PSI Global Steering Committee (SC-27), met last week. Leaders from public service unions around the world around shared strategies for advancing workers' rights, defending public services, fighting back the far-right and building a new, progressive multilateralism for the 21st century. 

SC-27 heard how PSI has added over 500,000 new members in the last 2 years; including 12 new unions at the meeting.

This expansion is a sign of unity and growing power of PSI and public services workers fightback as we organise & fightback against the far right and their billionaire backers. 

PSI Vice President, Thomas Kattnig of Younion Austria said at the meeting  

“PSI unity is the secret to this success - this path requires the support of the affiliates, leaders and secretariat – and this is what we have done.” 

SC discussed the recent victory at the International Court of Justice that confirmed the Right to Strike as covered by ILO Convention 87 – and the remaining risks to public service unions. PSI has established a legal taskforce to examine this decision and will issue a Brief to affiliates in coming weeks. 

General Secretary, Daniel Bertossa, reported on his meetings with the ILO Director General and PSI efforts to ensure the ILO priortises public service workers in the current phase of restructuring. SC noted the success in ensuring support for both the ILO Sectoral Activities branch and public services in the revised text. PSI also secured an ILO Technical meeting on advancing decent work and sustainable development in the water and sanitation sector in 2027. 

SC heard that PSI continues to build its organising and sector work and has recently concluded negotiations on the first ever Global Framework Agreement for social dialogue in Local Government with the United Cities and Local government (UCLG).  

The meeting heard about the plans made with our Health sector affiliates in Palestine to use our Gaza Solidarity fund to provide emergency surgery and mental health support for traumatised health workers.

SC passed a solidarity resolution supporting public service workers in Nepal where the incoming government has banned 12 public sector trade unions, is harassing public service trade union leaders and has introduced legislation to further attack public sector union rights. 

The General Secretary reported progress on PSI’s Public Services FightBack work including efforts to protect our leaders from attack. He announced the dates for the Public Services Fightback Conference in Madrid on 16-17 September and asked affiliates to save the date. 

SC discussed the review of the finances and operations of Congress 2023 and the timeframes for preparations for 2028 Congress. It set criteria for the hosting venue, opened the call for nominations for the Standing Orders Committee (SOC) and noted that the first set of decisions would need to be made at EB-168 in December 2026.   

PSI has met and exceeded all its target from the Plan for a Sustainable PSI and the deficit is nearly 200,000 euros lower than required by the plan due to strong membership growth and disciplined budget control. PSI has now trained all staff in LGBTQIA+ awareness and set out a comprehensive plan for administration and financial strengthening. The new Head Office structure was implemented from 1 January 2026. 

The General Secretary announced the appointment of Lina Jamoul as Deputy General Secretary. Lina will take up the appointment in addition to her current duties at head of Union Building. Lina has previously led a large public services union in the USA, been an organising director and community organiser in multiple countries and speaks English and Arabic. The Steering Committee noted the appointment and wished her well.

A New Multilateralism 

SC heard two guest speakers discuss the evolving crises of multilateralism and the threats posed by authoritarianism, far-right extremism, and the concentration of wealth and power. SC reflected on the need for a renewed internationalism rooted in people’s everyday needs and workplace organising, and the building of new “coalitions of the willing” to defend peace, rights, and public goods. 

Frank Hoffer from the Global Labor University addressed SC, outlining how defeating right-wing populism requires popular policies that limit the power of the very rich, strengthen public services, and invest in the future — and that sustained organising and door-to-door workplace engagement remains indispensable for lasting change. 

Hoffer said: “Progressives should not expect to win anything from multipolar competition among autocrats… The answer against right-wing populism is not the technocratic management of market imperatives but popular policies that address the daily needs of people, limit the economic and political power of the very rich, and invest in the future of human life on this planet.” 

Susana Muhamad presented the work of the Conference for the Just Transition Away from Fossil Fuels, which PSI affiliates contributed to. This represents an effort by 52 countries to push decarbonization forward, after frustration at the dominance of oil and coal interests over the COP process. She explained the threats and opportunities these efforts face, outlining how global south countries must work together to overcome the opposition to progress posed by vested interests of large corporations in the north – and how such processes must include spaces for organised labor and civil society.