BWI General Secretary Ambet Yuson met today with the BWI Japanese Affiliates Council (BWI JAC) - composed of UA ZENSEN, SINRIN ROREN, Zenkensoren, and Nikkenkyo - in Tokyo, reaffirming the strong partnership between BWI and its Japanese affiliates. The meeting offered an opportunity to assess current labour challenges in Japan and across the region, while charting coordinated strategies to defend workers’ rights and advance decent work in the global construction, wood, and related sectors.

During the discussions, BWI JAC underscored its steadfast commitment to BWI’s international campaigns, particularly those aimed at strengthening occupational safety and health, ensuring corporate accountability in global supply chains, and defending migrant workers’ rights. The affiliates reiterated their readiness to deepen their participation in BWI’s global actions, including its campaigns for climate justice, just transition, and the protection of freedom of association at a time when union rights are under growing pressure worldwide.

The meeting also coincided with this year’s commemoration of International Human Rights Day, highlighting the universal principle that workers’ rights are human rights. In this spirit, BWI and its Japanese affiliates renewed their pledge to uphold dignity at work, protect democratic freedoms, and ensure that every worker - local or migrant - can enjoy safety, fairness, and justice. Today’s gathering not only solidified long-standing solidarity but also set the direction for even stronger joint efforts in the year ahead.