Organising Trade Unions in the private sector and eliminating asbestos related diseases in Lao PDR

Laos is one of 46 Least Developed Countries and has been working toward a goal of reaching Middle Income Country status by the year 2026. With a transition away from its existing, largely rural and planned economy, toward an open economy, Lao PDR has seen a rapid increase in the private sector. Despite an increase in private sector jobs, Lao PDR remains a country of concern for workers. In its recent Global Labour Rights Survey, the ITUC placed Lao PDR with a group of countries deemed second worst in the world, countries where “there is no guarantee of rights for workers”.

Within this context, in 2016, Lao Federation of Trade Unions and Union Aid Abroad – APHEDA jointly designed and piloted a model for organizing in the private sector. The success of the pilot model in evaluations resulted in the project being scaled up and implemented in three provinces between 2018 and 2021. The project focus was to build the capacity of the Lao Federation of Trade Unions to organize within the rapidly expanding private sector and, through organised labour, improve the rights and conditions for private sector workers.