BY ERIC BELLMAN

JAKARTA—Indonesia, the Philippines and other developing countries are demanding more rights and higher wages world-wide for their legions of unskilled laborers—a trend that could shake up global labor markets.

The most recent battles have centered on maids, whose ranks have swelled in recent years in rich nations in the Middle East, Asia and elsewhere. The fight has implications beyond house cleaners and nannies. Advocates are hoping the push for more rights for domestic servants will spread to other unskilled migrants, as some countries grow increasingly reliant on imported cheap labor to baby-sit for their children, staff their factories and build ...