Jakarta, Sept. 23 -- Asia and the Pacific is home to the world's largest workforce. In recent years, the region has shown remarkable resilience, with real wages-inflation-adjusted pay-continuing to rise even as they declined in many other parts of the world.

But this tells only part of the story. Different countries have very different wage dynamics, and within the region 1.3 billion vulnerable workers-including women, migrants, workers with disabilities, and those in informal jobs-struggle with low pay, poor working conditions, and rising living costs.

An increase in average wages does not automatically translate into higher purchasing power for these workers and, even when it does, it may still fall short of ensuring a decent standard...