Workers

Data from the National Bureau of Statistics for May have set off immediate alarm bells among international financial institutions. The gloomy post-COVID economic outlook is worrying a population still marked by lockdowns and protests. As youth unemployment tops 20 per cent, the government scrubs critical facts and charts based on official data.

The complaint in a document released today by Amnesty International. Months after the end of the football review Fifa and Qatar have yet to offer "an effective and accessible regime" for obtaining reparations. Redress options precluded for those who have returned to their countries of origin.

The intertwining of local economic crisis and global rise in raw material costs has led to paralysis in the industry. Trade bodies worried about competition from Bangladesh, Nepal, India and Malaysia, where foreign investors find lower costs per square meter to build. The government has agreed to raise capped prices for contracts on new roads by 20 percent, but has 200 billion rupees in back payments.

The government wants to revise rules on permits for nikkei yonsei, foreign descendants up to the fourth generation. The first immigration incentives with the Abe government in 2018, albeit within strict labor, social and language terms. A revolution dictated by aging and declining population, collapsing consumers and active workers.

The National Association of Skilled Workers slams the Malaysian government for not doing enough to get high school graduates into vocational training to meet the needs of local industry. For the country’s deputy prime minister, the government has a plan to coordinate Malaysia's 1,260 vocational schools to eliminate competition and improve training. The UN development goals include “inclusive and equitable quality education”.

About 10,000 new nurses graduate annually but 7,000 leave state-run establishments for better pay at facilities serving foreign patients or located abroad. Low wages and heavy workloads (up to 80 hours per week) are blamed.

China's third-most populous province has launched a "100-day" plan to reduce youth employment, now at 20.4. Massive government intervention and sending graduates to rural areas are meant to overcome the crisis of the private sector, hit by the pandemic but also by measures against high-tech companies. This is unlikely to be effective while discontent grows in universities.

Chhim Sithar was convicted of "inciting social chaos" at NagaWorld, Phnom Penh’s large gambling complex. She led a strike to defend workers' rights and get the company to reinstate hundreds of fired employees. Eight other union officials were given a suspended prison sentence ranging from 12 to 18 months. Meanwhile, the government has intensified its crackdown on dissent ahead of the July election.

The China Labour Bulletin dennounces: Despite forming a good percentage of the workforce, delivery women in China are discrimated against or given negative reviews simply because they are women. The starting pay is often lower. Several local trade unions have intervened but no platform negotiations have taken place.

Thousands of nurses walk out to protest the president’s decision to veto a bill approved by South Korea’s opposition-controlled National Assembly. Doctors are against the new legislation, claiming that it will cause chaos. For nurses, such concerns are unfounded, insisting that the country needs more care centres to cope with a rapidly aging population.

Investigations focus on a racket that affects people across Southeast Asia. Lured to the Philippines for a regular job, the victims are held against their will and forced into criminal activities like rigged sales, erotic chats, and cryptocurrency scams. A Philippine senator raised the issue of “scam hubs" urging government action.

According to reports by international organisations, almost 105 million people are officially unemployed in Asia-Pacific, 12 per cent more than in 2019. Progress in informal and vulnerable jobs has also been lost, while the sectors with the highest employment growth actually offer few jobs.