Over 2 million workers anticipated to be laid off in Thailand

_{By Hseng Khio Fah
10 March 2009}

Among those workers to be laid off would be workers from electronics, shoe and furniture factories, transportation, and tourism including graduated people.

Most of them would be migrant workers because they don’t have work permits, she said. “Currently, more migrant workers have been laid off than Thai workers.”

Last week, there were over 40 migrant workers from Chiangmai returning to their homeland due to lack of work, difficulty to survive and fear of police arrest.

Many migrant factory workers from Burma are feeling the effects of Thailand’s economic slowdown, Independent Mon News Agency (IMNA) reported yesterday.

In 2008, 93,275 workers had been laid off and this early year, 66, 776 more had been laid off.

However, Thai labor could be impacted as well if Thailand’s economy gets worse because some business owners could move their factories or their businesses to border towns like Maesod and Maesai in order to get cheap labor, she added.

“Most business owners don’t want to hire Thai labor because they are entitled to ask compensation under the law. They will only hire migrant labor so they don’t’ need to pay compensation.”

There are at least 2 million legal and illegal migrant workers in Thailand. But there is no law to protect those migrant workers.

In May, 2008, the Thai Labor Solidarity Committee sent a letter to the Thai government to pass a law for all migrants to have equal rights, to be safe in workplace and to allow them freedom of assembly. 

Debbie Stothard from Altsean (Alternative Asean) also commented that if Thailand’s economy is to recover, they will need workers immediately, especially cheap labor.

“If the Thai government deports all migrant workers back to Burma, they may try to go to other countries because they have to survive,” said Jackie Pollock, Coordinator of the Migrant Assistance Program (MAP) “Deportation will only make it difficult for Thailand to get workers.”