Geneva, June 2, 2025 — On the opening day of the 113th International Labor Conference, the International Young Christian Workers (IYCW) issued a compelling call for justice and legal recognition for platform workers during the committee meeting on Decent Work in the Platform Economy.

Teuy Duangsumpong, representing IYCW in the Asia-Pacific region, delivered the statement, shedding light on the growing precariousness of work in digital platforms such as food delivery and ride-hailing services.

“Many platform workers are classified as independent contractors. We don’t have formal job contracts, social protections, or the right to negotiate our conditions,” Duangsumpong said. “Our incomes are unstable, and we work more and earn less.”

Duangsumpong shared a powerful testimony from a Thai food delivery rider to illustrate the everyday exploitation faced by young workers in the platform economy:

“The app controls everything. Sometimes I’m blocked from accepting orders without a reason. I was in an accident during a delivery—there was no support, no compensation. I had to bear the cost alone.”

Such stories, according to IYCW, reflect a deeper systemic injustice: companies profit while platform workers are denied basic rights and safety nets. Even when national laws technically allow workers to form associations, their lack of formal employment status strips them of the right to bargain collectively.

In response, the IYCW laid out clear and urgent demands:

• Paid rest and leave without risking income loss,
• Workplace safety and support in case of accidents,
• Access to universal social protection,
• Support for workers’ families, including healthcare, education, and childcare.

“As Young Christian Workers, we believe in working with dignity,” Duangsumpong affirmed. “We call on the ILO and policymakers to create strong laws that formally recognize platform workers and give us access to the protections every worker deserves.”

The IYCW’s intervention contributed to a broader push from worker organizations across the globe advocating for robust international labor standards that cover the rapidly expanding platform economy.

As the committee continues its first standard-setting discussion on this issue, IYCW and allied groups urge the ILO to lead with courage—and to ensure that technological innovation does not come at the cost of workers’ rights and dignity.