This report estimates the costs for workers to migrate internationally and looks at how easy it is for workers to move under the increased economic integration planned for ASEAN. In order to do this, the report simulates how worker welfare is affected by enhanced trade integration under different scenarios of labor mobility costs. This report highlights how mobility affects the well-being of workers, the constraints workers face when migrating for better opportunities, and the solutions to ease these constraints. The diversity of economic development in Southeast Asia means that there are ample opportunities for workers to seek out better jobs that pay higher wages. The publication documents why workers are not always able to take advantage of these opportunities, what is lost when they are not able to take advantage of them, and potential policies that would expand their access to them.

Overarching themes of the book

1. ASEAN countries are significant senders of migrants globally, but also important destinations for migrants from the region.
2. Large intra-ASEAN migration flows are the result of significant diversity in economic development within the region.
3. Significant costs of international and domestic labor mobility in ASEAN limit the ability of workers to change firms, sectors, and locations.
4. The impacts of migration in the region are generally positive, although some groups lose out, and domestic policies play an important role in shaping these impacts.
5. Making movement between and within ASEAN countries less costly would improve the welfare of ASEAN workers.
6. Weaknesses in migration systems increase the costs of international labor mobility, but policy reforms can help to resolve these problems.

The rest of the overview is structured as follows. After discussing the steps that ASEAN member states have taken to facilitate labor mobility in the context of economic integration, the overview explains the benefits of increased labor mobility; explores the barriers to international migration; and presents the components of the migration system and the potential breakdowns within these components. The final section concludes with a discussion of strategies to reduce the barriers to international labor mobility.