Thailand's National Economic and Social Development Council (NESDB) released Q2 2025 employment data showing positive job creation (+5.1%) but also real wage decline (-2.88% after inflation adjustment). Key labour challenges identified include: mandatory employee welfare fund enforcement from October 1st (affecting 107,000+ businesses and 5.7M workers), El Niño agricultural impacts, illegal migrant labour (+19.3% in illegal reserved occupations), and critical protection gaps in the growing gig economy (projected 460K workers in 2025, with inadequate healthcare, income security, and algorithmic accountability protections). Government is developing new legislation to address platform worker rights, following international ILO standards.