Minister Hajdu strengthens Canada's partnerships with Employment Ministers at the G7

Canada NewsWire

GENEVA, June 10, 2026

GENEVA, June 10, 2026 /CNW/ - In a world where relationships have become frayed, working together as countries is more important than ever. The rules-based order that has underpinned global prosperity for decades is undergoing a profound transformation – driven by geopolitical realignment, economic upheaval, and the accelerating pace of technological change. In a rapidly changing world, the Government of Canada is focusing on what we can control: building a stronger more resilient Canada and ensuring workers can adapt by building the skills and confidence they need to succeed.

At the G7 Labour and Employment Ministerial Meeting held in Geneva, Switzerland, Minister Hajdu, Minister of Jobs and Families and Minister responsible for the Federal Economic Development Agency for Northern Ontario, reinforced Canada's leadership in promoting inclusive growth, creating employment opportunities for young people, and protecting workers to ensure no one is left behind.

Minister Hajdu highlighted examples of Canada's actions to support the labour market and ensure good quality jobs. These efforts include launching Team Canada Strong to recruit, train and hire skilled trades workers to meet the country's housing, infrastructure and defence needs; upcoming action to make Canada's robust regime to protect against forced labour practices even stronger; ensuring the landscape for full labour market engagement, including through affordable child care; and advancing fairness in the labour market by modernizing federal labour protections.

The Minister also met with her counterparts from Spain, Mexico, the United States, the European Union, the United Kingdom, Germany and France. Each of these meetings serves to inform domestic policy development and advance Canadian priorities in key areas such as skills training and artificial intelligence, labour market inclusion and international labour governance.

In a changing world of work, international cooperation is essential. Canada remains committed to working with international partners to support workers and share solutions that create opportunity for all.

Quote

"As the world of work continues to evolve, our focus is clear: supporting workers, who are the backbone of our economy and drive success in every part of the country. In a rapidly evolving global environment, we are working with our international partners to find shared solutions to today's challenges—providing workers and young people in Canada with inclusive and safe workplaces and equipping them with the skills they need to succeed now and in the future."
– The Honourable Patty Hajdu, Minister of Jobs and Families and Minister responsible for the Federal Economic Development Agency for Northern Ontario

Quick facts

The G7 Labour and Employment Ministers' Meeting is a forum for high-level strategic discussions on common challenges, best practices and coordinated policy approaches on labour and employment priorities.
During the Ministerial Meeting, Minister Hajdu also highlighted Canada's support for initiatives advanced under the French presidency. Canada signalled support for France's Communiqué and the G7 key outcomes this year, which included:
- G7 AI Training Hub
- G7 Conference on Labour Mobility and Career Progression
- G7 Toolkit for Standards-Based Criteria to Identify Risks of Forced Labour in the Extraction of Critical Minerals
- G7 Level Playing Field for Quality Jobs and Decent Work
Through the Spring Economic Update 2026, the Government of Canada proposed to launch Team Canada Strong, a nationwide effort to recruit, train and hire 80,000 up to 100,000 new skilled workers by 2030–31.

Associated links

SOURCE Employment and Social Development Canada