On today’s celebration of International Labor Day, the Initiatives for Workers’ Solidarity in Asia Pacific (IWSAP) issues this statement in solidarity with all workers, workers’ associations, unions, and advocates in the region and around the world. IWSAP honors the struggle and sacrifices of workers from whom we owe all dimensions of progress we experience today. Yet, they remain to be one of the most exploited sectors of society.
As the 2024 report of the International Labor Organization (ILO) reveals, there remains persistent issues related to poverty and informality in Asia Pacific in which a big proportion of workers are still “engaged in low-quality, informal employment despite decades of economic growth.” Zooming in, ILO reports that two in three workers were in informal employment in 2023, a very insignificant improvement over the course of 10 years. Likewise, unemployment continues to worsen in the region as it was projected to remain roughly unchanged in 2024 and 2025, at 4.2%, which corresponds to 87.7 million out of work last year.
These data are very much present on what is happening on the ground. The trend of work informalization in many sectors of society has led to heightened exploitation that severely violates workers’ rights. Platform work through apps like Grab and Uber have increased the already precarious conditions that workers have been facing everyday. Platform workers in Thailand, Indonesia, the Philippines, and New Zealand have to carry the burden of low wages and overwork to be able to provide for themselves and for their families.
Agricultural workers in South Asia also face tremendous economic insecurity because most of the time, they are not covered by labor and social protection laws. Vendors and public transportation workers are also constantly displaced and seen as eyesore by their own governments who favor private enterprises instead of the safety and livelihood of their own citizens.
Critical intersections such as gender and migration also contribute to the declining conditions that workers confront wherever they are. Migrant domestic workers in Hong Kong, for instance, receive lower wages compared to their counterparts and are not able to enjoy enough rest days and social protection despite their crucial role in keeping the economy alive. Female drivers of ride-hailing apps in Asia Pacific are forced to work in dangerous environments that puts them at risk of road accidents and sexual harassment. On top of these, women workers are also expected to provide care work and emotional labor for their own families. True until today, the double burden carried by women workers further curtails their right to self-determination.
All of these issues circle back to the stubborn prominence of neoliberalism that, for decades now, have been the culprit of multiple crises that worsens rights violations against workers and stunts the economic power of those who work day and night.
Amidst all these, this year’s Labor Day calls for a celebration of the historical and militant struggle of workers in the Asia Pacific region and across the globe. Workers, formal and informal, in different parts of the region are ever-ready and headstrong to face battles as a collective force.
Especially in a time of intensifying economic problems, rising fascism, repression, and wars, formal and informal workers, workers’ associations, unions, and organizations are in the best position to assert their voices and reclaim their power from those who oppress them. Through the collective strength and grit of workers, the status quo will surely be overturned.
Our organization, IWSAP, shall contribute in propelling the workers’ movement through rigorous programs that will help in linking and raising the issues of workers wherever they may be in the region. Through future research and education initiatives, and engagements with governments, multi-stakeholder spaces, and unions, IWSAP is with the broad ranks of workers who want just change in the system.
As we mark today’s Labor Day with the undying dedication of all workers to their just cause, we must also strengthen our support to their struggles, call for workers-centered policy reforms, social transformation and accountability from governments and big businesses who work in cahoots together to undermine labor and human rights.
Ultimately, formal and informal workers, workers’ associations, unions, and advocates alike must strengthen solidarity among our ranks. The key ingredient to fighting all forms of abuse and oppression is the collective action that we foster. Beyond the vibrant protests during Labor Day, what is more crucial is to continue establishing strong fronts of grassroots resistance and alternative spaces that will pave the way for the creation of a people-centered and workers-centered society.
#LaborDay2025 #FormalAndInformalWorkersSolidarity
