Good morning, this is Michelle. Drastic budget cuts and thousands of layoffs announced in the last months across UN agencies due to states shrinking their aid budgets drew out an otherwise discreet crowd for Workers’ Day.
Hundreds of UN workers, who see not only their jobs but also their mission to serve millions of people in need at stake, gathered yesterday at Place des Nations in Geneva for a demonstration.
Their message? “We want to have our say.” |
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Staff from UN agencies in Geneva gather to protest against the drastic budget cuts and staff reductions that are affecting thousands of UN employees worldwide, at Place des Nations, during International Workers' Day in Geneva, 1 May 2025. (Keystone/Salvatore Di Nolfi)
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Under the beating spring sun at Geneva’s Place des Nations, around 500 UN staffers assembled on Thursday to protest sweeping budget cuts that have shaken the global body in recent months. The event was rare – UN workers are typically discreet, adhering to their vow of neutrality, one demonstrator noted. Yet, many, still wearing their signature sky-blue lanyards around their necks, took time during their lunch breaks to join the rally.
Since January, foreign aid cuts from the US and other donors have triggered a string of announcements of thousands of layoffs across UN agencies in Geneva and beyond.
“We’re not in the habit of speaking out, we’re not in the habit of complaining…but we’re human beings who are also entitled to our labour rights,” said Séverine Deboos, representative of the International Labour Organisation (ILO) Staff Union, addressing the crowd gathered beneath the shadow of the towering red Broken Chair.
Read the full story on Geneva Solutions.
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Here's what else is happening
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International Geneva moves
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Isabelle Falconnier will step down from the Geneva Press Club on 29 September 2025. (Geneva Press Club)
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Isabelle Falconnier to bid farewell to Geneva Press Club.
The journalist and author announced she will be stepping down as director of the association, which organises press conferences and exchanges with international Geneva actors, at the end of September after two years at the helm. Falconnier began her career at the now-defunct Swiss magazine L’Hebdo, where she was a regular columnist and was promoted to editor-in-chief. A literary critic and author of several books, Falconnier also presided over Geneva’s annual book fair, Le Salon du Livre, for several years. Appointed to lead the Press Club in July 2023, Falconer said it was now time “to pursue a new direction in my professional life” after having helped bolster its activities and increase the number of events over the last two years.
“It has been both a pleasure and a privilege to help strengthen and grow the Geneva Press Club, a relevant and dynamic actor on the media debate scene,” she said. “The Club consistently underscores the importance of journalism and the exchange of ideas in our society, while serving as a valuable platform dedicated to international issues linked to Switzerland.” The club is a platform for debate and information aimed at journalists from the Swiss and international press, as well as international organisations and institutions. It has nearly 300 members, including major Swiss media and press groups. Geneva Solutions collaborates with the club on a number of events, including one last month featuring Geneva and Swiss politicians entitled What strategy to save international Geneva?
-By Kasmira Jefford
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