Health as human right is widely accepted and yet the approaches to health – underpinned by different philosophies and ideologies- have never been so different. Today the world is in the middle of a health crisis, which stands paradoxically in the face of the knowledge, technology advancement and the amount of wealth being created. The recognition is with us that something is wrong, pointing to the fact that it is more than a challenge of disease but a challenge of ill politics. Moving away from a disease-specific approach to a health for all agenda necessitates a radical change in policy-making, "health" and "all" being the signposts for this change. A new mindset for reforming health governance and health politics at national and international level is crucial.

Health for all is a political struggle for an equal and just society and it is a long and challenging distance away. The history of trade unions has from the outset been shaped by the struggle for social justice. Hence, their’s is a crucial role in building a healthy society and in mobilizing people and people’s organisations around a health for all political agenda. One hundred years ago the developed world made remarkable achievements in controlling disease and reducing death, and it did this by recognising the importance of building strong national public health systems and of creating safer living and working conditions.