Fourth Joint Dialogue on labour migration between the ASEAN Trade Union Council and the ASEAN Confederation of Employers

The Fourth Joint Dialogue of ATUC and ACE is a follow-up to three successful joint dialogues on labour migration organized in 2016, 2019 and 2023. While the role of social partners at the national and regional levels in effective governance of labour migration is widely acknowledged within ASEAN, their partnership to jointly contribute to policy dialogue and concrete actions is relatively limited. At the 2016, 2019 and 2023 meetings, both ATUC and ACE acknowledged the value of holding such joint dialogues to build trust, address emerging issues, and develop and put forward common positions on labour migration.

The Fourth Joint Dialogue is organized back to back with the “High-Level Tripartite Regional Seminar on Industrial Relations in Southeast Asian Countries – Jobs and Social Protection for Just Transitions” hosted by the ILO with support from Japan’s Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare and the ASEAN Secretariat on 15-16 February in Vientiane, Lao People’s Democratic Republic.

Objectives

The Fourth Joint Dialogue of ACE and ATUC will:

1. Review regional-level progress in addressing ACE and ATUC priority labour migration policy areas identified in the first (2016), second (2019) and third (2023) joint dialogues and workers’ and employers’ engagement in regional policy processes on labour migration, especially activities of the ASEAN Committee on Migrant Workers (ACMW);
2. Discuss and agree on plans for ATUC and ACE joint advocacy and action on labour migration;
3. Consider ATUC proposal for setting up an ATUC-ACE steering group for the implementation of joint activities on labour migration; and
4. Discuss and adopt a joint outcome statement.