This study explores on how Filipino online ESL teachers construct, negotiate, and sustain their professional identity and legitimacy within digital communities of practice with regards to global linguistics-based bias and the precariousness of platformbased labor. The author argues that Filipino online ESL teachers' experiences demonstrate not just adaptability, but also resilience and agency in an increasingly competitive and often inequitable environment in which they teach globally. A qualitative multiple case study methodology was used; semi-structured interview data and classroom observation data were collected and then analyzed using thematic analysis and cross-case analysis. It was found that the teachers' professional identity evolves during "a journey of becoming" as they move from a position of economic necessity to professional commitment and fulfillment. To mitigate challenges including native speaker benchmarking, platform regulation, and technical limitations the teachers use adaptive professionalism, perform accountability, and cultivate multirole identities that include relational engagement. The teachers also utilize human capital through certification and social capital through peer networks and relationships with students. These findings are interpreted through Positioning Theory, Capital Theory, and Community of Practice Theory; these theories illustrate that the teachers transform structural barriers into opportunities for growth and indicate that relational labor, peer collaboration, and ongoing professional development are essential for creating a more sustainable and equitable online ESL teaching environment.