The G20 Summit: A Critical Look from the Perspective of Minimum Wage Earners

When the world’s most powerful economies gather under the bright lights of the G20 Summit, their communiqués are filled with noble-sounding phrases “inclusive growth,” “sustainability,” “shared prosperity.” But from the shack of a minimum wage earner, those words oVen echo like distant thunder loud, but bringing no rain. 

A Club Born of Crisis, Not of Compassion 

The G20 was born in 1999, not out of solidarity, but out of self-preservation. The Asian financial crisis had exposed the fragility of global markets, and the world’s richest nations gathered to stabilise the system their system. When it was elevated to Leaders’ level in 2008 aVer the global financial meltdown, the same working class that bailed out capitalism through austerity, retrenchments, and wage freezes was not invited to the table. So while the G20 represents 85% of global GDP and two thirds of the world’s population, its decisions are sYll largely shaped by the same forces that benefit from global inequality.

South Africa’s Seat at the Table — Symbol or Substance? 

South Africa’s presence in the G20 has oVen been framed as a victory for the Global South, a bridge between the developed and developing world. But is it really a seat of power, or are we merely polishing the silverware in the dining rooms of the powerful? Our presidency theme of “Solidarity, Equality, and Sustainability” offers a moral compass, yet it remains to be seen whether those ideals can survive the heavy hand of Western interests. When South Africa speaks about debt relief for poorer nations, fair access to climate finance, or equitable trade in critical minerals, the G20 listens politely but seldom acts decisively. Are we representing the oppressed nations that once served as colonies, or have we been reduced to “Uncle Toms” managing the kitchens of global capitalism? The G20’s Class-Specific Peace As Oleg Barabanov of the Valdai Club observed, the G20 often promotes a “class-specific peace between the exploiters and the exploited.” 

Its declarations identify problems like poverty, climate change, and inequality but never their causes. It avoids naming the system itself: one built on exploitation, cheap labour, and the hoarding of wealth by the few. This “peace” is designed to pacify, not to transform. It creates the illusion of global cooperation while protecting the entrenched privileges of the North.

The Lies, Propaganda, and Power Plays 

Much of this global theatre is also drenched in propaganda. The United States, whose embattled leadership oVen waves the flag of democracy and freedom, continues to weaponize finance, trade, and diplomacy to protect its corporate interests. 

Their rhetoric about “rules-based order” hides a legacy of intervention, economic blackmail, and manipulation the very practices that keep the Global South underdeveloped. When we recall the scandals surrounding figures like Epstein and the hypocrisy that follows Western moral lectures, we must ask: who really owns the moral high ground? 

BRICS A Path to a New Multipolar World? 

In contrast, BRICS of which South Africa is a proud member has become a symbol of resistance to this unequal order. It speaks openly about neo-colonial exploitation and the need for a fair redistribution of wealth and influence. Its call for a “mulYpolar world” resonates deeply with naYons that have long been locked out of global decision-making. Yet, BRICS is sYll a work in progress. Its future depends on whether it can embody true equality or whether it too will fall into the trap of reproducing hierarchies between strong and weak members. 

From the Shack to the Summit A Worker’s Lens 

As a trade unionist, I see global economics not in the language of GDP or capital flows, but in the lives of the workers who keep the world afloat. The value of any global forum, whether G20 or BRICS, must be measured by its impact on those who earn the least the cleaners, security guards, nurses, miners, and public servants who build nations from below. Without the working class, the world stops. Without their labour, no summit would have a hall, no delegate would have a car to ride in, and no meal would be served. The working class is the invisible foundation beneath every global headline and yet, their concerns are absent from those grand speeches. 

Platform or Puppet? 

South Africa’s role in the G20 must not be dismissed, but neither should it be romanticised. We are in an arena where power is uneven, and where the Global South must constantly fight to be heard.

Our task is to use this platform not as a dining table, but as a battleground to speak truth to power, to resist tokenism, and to fight for systemic reform that ends the cycles of debt and dependency. This should not be an either/or choice between G20 and BRICS. The two can coexist but only if we are clear about our purpose: building a just world order that places people before profit.

The World Without Workers

The world powers mean nothing without the working class. The G20, BRICS, or any other formation must ultimately answer a simple question: do they liberate workers from poverty and exploitation, or do they merely manage the conditions of their suffering? If the answer remains the latter, then the future belongs not to summits, but to the organised voices rising from the shacks, streets, and shop floors of the world. Because it is from there from the heart of the working class that the true power to reshape humanity will emerge.

** Tahir Maepa is the Secretary General of the Public Service and Commercial Union of South Africa (PSCU) and founder of Resistance Against Impunity Movement (RAIM) NPC. 

*** The views expressed here do not necessarily represent those of IOL or Independent Media.

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