Labor Notes Regional Conference in Taipei

Dear David,

This Labor Day, I’m feeling inspired, uplifted, and as committed as ever to our common struggle for global labor rights. I’ve just returned from Taipei, Taiwan, where ILRF co-organized the Labor Notes Asia Regional Conference. It was wonderful to be surrounded by over 200 rank-and-file workers, activists, and trade unionists from 17 countries and regions, to listen to their stories and share organizing and campaign skills with each other.

Please join ILRF as a Monthly Sustainer this Labor Day so that we can continue to stand with these organizers in advocating for workers' rights.

Across Asia, multinational corporations are pushing an agenda of outsourcing, subcontracting, and short-term contracts to minimize their responsibility for labor rights violations and to keep out independent, democratic unions. Millions of migrant workers have few legal protections and face precarious employment and unsafe conditions. Despite mass dismissals, the risk of arrest, and increasing restrictions on civil society, workers and grassroots labor organizations continue to fight back.

In this context, conference participants explored challenges to organizing precarious workers in repressive contexts and discussed strategies to cultivate women workers’ leadership and address gender-based violence. Conference participants came together across electronics, apparel, seafood, and other industries for skill-building workshops, panel discussions, and cross-sector networking and strategizing.

The conference featured inspirational speakers, including the organizers of the Taiwanese flight attendants’ union who recently concluded a 17-day strike (the longest strike in several decades in Taiwan), Hong Kong labor and union activists who supported the general strike in Hong Kong, and a report from the frontlines of the new wave of strikes in Myanmar.

It was a rare opportunity for emerging and experienced rank-and-file union and labor activists to share and learn organizing approaches, discuss strategies around defending workers and labor activists under threat, and strengthen existing and build new cross-sector and international solidarity necessary to confront global capitalism.

In a show of international solidarity, more than 70 conference participants joined a demonstration at Foxconn’s headquarters in Taipei in support of Filipino migrant workers dismissed at its subsidiary company in Japan. This action gained media interest in Taiwan, not least because the head of Foxconn, Terry Gou, may run as a presidential candidate in the Taiwanese election. Participants also showed solidarity with labor activists in the Philippines who have been organizing under martial law.

This conference would not have been possible without the generous support of our committed donors. This Labor Day, I hope you will support our work at ILRF by joining as a Monthly Sustainer or with a one-time gift.

Many thanks for your support and please let me know if you plan on joining the 2020 Labor Notes Conference in Chicago and would like to connect there. 

In solidarity,

Kevin Lin
China Program Officer