Changes to the minimum daily wage in Thailand are on the horizon as Labour Minister Phiphat discloses plans to increase the rate in 2020, much to the approval of the country’s working populace. This notable move is set to be considered by the Cabinet on the 25th of September, with aspirations of unveiling the new wages by November, in a timely manner to coincide with the New Year celebration for the citizens of Thailand.
The labor minister announced this during a visit to the Federation of Thai Industries (FTI) headquarters, where he was received with warmth by the Federation’s top-tier executives, including the chairperson, Kriengkrai Thiennukul. Alongside the prospective modification to the minimum wage, the conversation also touched on the proposition of an uplift in labor productivity.
Minister Phiphat revealed having engaged the Federation, a pillar in the business community, in the deliberations over the wage augmentation owing to its rich insights on labor matters. He disclosed his awareness of the pervading concerns from the private sector triggered by the impending squash in the minimum wage.
“Our engagement with the concerned parties on the feedback received today is aimed at addressing the matter with surgical precision, mitigating drastic backlash on business owners, and achieving an outcome that appeases the workforce,” he commented. However, specific details of the wage increment were held back with Premier Srettha Thavisin rumored to have suggested a climb to 400 baht per day, up from the current range of 328 to 354 baht.
In their sit-down with the labor minister, the FTI brass emphasized the necessity for Thailand to channel focus into improving labor productivity as a means of catalyzing the nation’s competitiveness.
Thiennukul stated the FTI’s commitment to working in close quarters with the Labor Ministry in driving Thailand’s labor productivity and competitiveness trajectory. He added that the Federal Ministry’s support needed to extend to the industrial sector to spur its growth.
As he underlined the need for Thai industries to adapt amid a digital revolution, Thiennukul stressed the requirement for both mainstreaming digital and automated technologies and shifting from unskilled to high-skilled labor.
Aside from their discussions on raising productivity, the FTI vice-chairman, Suchart Chantaranakaracha, called for the government’s backing in galvanizing the science, technology, engineering, and mathematics graduates’ output, keen on meeting the labor market’s heightened demand.
Chantaranakaracha also brought forward a proposal for government incentives to stimulate the employment of more seniors in response to the growing labor shortages, advocating for elderly up-skilling and re-skilling programs to ease their transition back into the job market.
In the vein of increasing the workers’ earnings while aiding their employers in trimming production costs, he championed the notion of “paying by skills.”
Phiphat echoed these sentiments, branding the concept of a skills-based minimum wage as a “fair option.” “A flat rate for the minimum daily wage is a no-go stance. In consideration of the worker’s skillset and experience, they ought to be remunerated accordingly, not a universally placed rate which would greatly disadvantage the skilled and proficient workers,” said the labor minister.
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