ayayay

What is the common practice when it comes to christmas holidays here in Thailand.

It is probably common that thai employees gets a holiday for christmas, but how many days are common? 1 week? 2 weeks?

And around what days? 24th until the 7th of Jan?

I sent a query off to bangkokjungle.com and here is the somewhat enigmatic response I got.

Those of you asking about the 2008 Bangkok Jazz Festival will be amused to know that it’s to be held in the usual location but in March 2009. Our mainstream Thai media entertainment spies say it’s then or not at all and the names invited may not be as bright and shining as years gone by. More when we have it.

http://www.bangkokjungle.com/news/2008-ban...-jazz-festival/

Doesn't look real good...

Wonder what happened.

Hmm, i wonder too...

Can anyone tell me where the good used English language bookstores are in Bangkok? I just moved to Ranu Nakhon and I need a library desperately! I'll be in BKK next week and want to take an empty suitcase down with me to fill with books, something a bit meatier than Tom Clancy and John Grisham. Thanks!

Dasa Book Cafe

Elite Book Store still open? An old one, 20++ years, 2nd hand books. Just down Sukumvit from Villa Market there near Soi 33. Sometimes a bit pricey.

Mac

Yes, still there (i think)

Our sales guys go with the motorbike. Own motorbike, they get some Baht per km.

They write that daily in a list.

Normaly sales guys should use car as motorbike does not look good. But than they just stay in the traffic jam.

Our customer are mostly technician or greedy Chinese and they don't care too much.

Yeah, i agree, car would look much better, but my budget is really tight at the moment and i cant really afford to by even a motorcycle right now. How much baht do you give him each kilometer?

How many customers did he see?

Where are they?

What is the average cost per customer visit?

How productive a sales person is he?

Not very so far, but i have had very bad experience with other sales people so far, so i have very low expectations, as i can not afford really qualified sales person, as i am on a tight budget, i am happy with him so far, that he is at least trying.

I find a combination of BTS/MRT and Taxis/Motos to be very cost effective. You can take a taxi from say Silom to Lower Sukhumvit outside of rush hour for 60 Baht. You can take the BTS for 22 on the monthly card (by the trip or even 20 per trip is buy 30 trips).

Yeah, a real good planning would of course be the best, not sure thought how to motivate him to plan more, now that he has gotten used to take the taxi everywhere.

If he is exclusively taking taxis and seeing 4 Customers a day at 100B per taxi ride (poor scheduling maybe), in a 22 day work month it comes to nearly 9,000.

The thing is though, that i estimate he does around maybe between 1-2 customer on an average a day. Usually 2, sometimes three customers, but then he also takes some day off every week where he does not visit any customers at all.

A little off topic but...... A few years ago I got a job with Wordlcom as a fibreoptic engineer. My job took me all around Europe. When I started I was given a company American Express card for expenses. Being new I thought I would impress the boss and keep my ex's to a minimum. After 2 months I was called in to see said boss. He gave me a royal ear bashing and ordes to make sure I spent 6 times as much every month on ex's as I was making all the other guys look bad. So from then on it was top hotels, drinks on me and I'll get this one whenever I went out. Soon after they went bust. Oh well, it was fun while it lasted

Heh, well, that was alittle off topic, but nevertheless interesting.

And as for my original questions, isn´t there anyone out there who has a clue about this?

buy the employee a monthly BTS card..... this will reduce the cost by a 1/4

Yeah, i was thinking about that, the only problem is BTS is so limited so i thought it might not be worth it.

I am also interested in hearing how others have solved travel expenses for, for example a sales person. I heard one guy, who used to work for a big company only got 2000 baht a month for travel expenses here in Bangkok. I might have remembered it wrong though.

holiday, they are allowed 6 days a year

Assuming they have been working for one year, right?

So if they have been working for 6 month, they could have 3 days?

Sick leave, nothing upto 3 months - after 6 months and upto a year i think 30 Days, but all sick leave has to be with a letter from doctor

but you can find more info here Labour Law

ok, interesting, i do not have to have a letter from the doctor, just want to get a picture of the situation, i also heard the 30 day thing, and to my ears, it sounds a lot.

Thanks for the link, will check it!

Hi

Does anyone have any experience with having a sales person in your business, if so, how do you usually solve his/her travel expenses.

Do you give him a set amount of money that he then has to use wisely in order to visit customers etc? My sales person only work in Bangkok, but last month he cost me 9000 baht in taxi rides, something tells me i must find a better way to handle his travel expenses. Way too expensive, right?

Another thing, how much holiday can a thai employee expect each year? Is there any set rules for this, if so, how does it work?

I am also curious about sick leaves, how many days each year can a thai take off for sickness without getting a reduced salary?

or is PO usually only used when purchasing larger or more expensive goods?

Yes..... if you want to write up the paperworks

I wouldn’t do it myself - let the seller do it on their sale receipt/order, and then you can get a copy of it.

Look over......

the description area carefully to make sure that is the specific item you want - like….color, series, size, and other very detail information concerning the product you’re buying,…..because sometimes it will be difficult to return the items

Look over......

the payment method , payment schedule, and return policy carefully

Aha, so you are suggesting there is no need to issue a PO, but instead let the seller make a detailed receipt? But then, i do not understand the function of the PO, because IF you order something and then get a receipt, and it does not match what you ordered in the first place, then what happens?

Isn´t that the exact function of the PO? I mean, the PO should come before the receipt, once the receipt is printed out, its already "too late"?

This is why you have to get the confirmation of your order from the seller first.

Look over everything and reconfirm back, and usually for big items you will get approx 24-48 hrs to cancel your order, some seller might give a longer period, it depends on what is being ordered, or how customized it is.

If you don’t feel comfortable with this method, then write one up yourself and send it to them first then, if it will make you sleep better at night.

Ofcourse you could follow the accounting book from A-Z of how to operate the business. And there are so many types of business and each one will run a slightly different from the next.

I don’t know how big is your business or how detailed you want it to be, or even the type of the business.

Paperwork for running a professional business is just slightly different from let’s say running a retail business. And running a business based on face to face is also slightly different than a virtual store over the internet.

Why don’t you tell us what are you doing exactly, and I’m sure many here can be able to help you in more details?

Disclaimer: I'm not an accountant or anything, and giving advices based on my own experiences of running my own business for the last 15 yrs.

Ok, great, most of the things has become a lot clearer now, many thanks to you and the rest of you who helped me clear some of the question marks i had. I might come back with some other question later, but for now, this is enough. Thank you guys.

Ok, yes it helps a lot, thanx, about order confirmation, is it common that companies use it, or is it just as common that companies dont use it?

Absolutely, if it’s my company, or when I'm ordering the product as a customer

And, do i send it out before i send out the invoice, or together, and do i send it by email or regular mail? What is most common?

Of course, waay before the invoice

By email - most preferable - easy, free, and less paperworks

About Purchase orders, would it be necessary for me to use a purchase order if i only want to buy some stationaries such as a few sheets of paper some file folders, and some pens from a company,

No need - for regular and small amount of daily office supplies - just keep the sale receipt for evidence

or is PO usually only used when purchasing larger or more expensive goods?

Yes..... if you want to write up the paperworks

I wouldn’t do it myself - let the seller do it on their sale receipt/order, and then you can get a copy of it.

Look over......

the description area carefully to make sure that is the specific item you want - like….color, series, size, and other very detail information concerning the product you’re buying,…..because sometimes it will be difficult to return the items

Look over......

the payment method , payment schedule, and return policy carefully

Aha, so you are suggesting there is no need to issue a PO, but instead let the seller make a detailed receipt? But then, i do not understand the function of the PO, because IF you order something and then get a receipt, and it does not match what you ordered in the first place, then what happens?

Isn´t that the exact function of the PO? I mean, the PO should come before the receipt, once the receipt is printed out, its already "too late"?

I know what an invoice is, but when is the usual time to send out an invoice, and how?

Up to you:

before U send out the good

Including in the packing package with the good

Or after they have received the good

For example if i sell a product to a customer, lets say i plan to start to sell jeans over internet to customers here in Thailand.

Do i send an invoice together with the actual jeans, so when the customer receives the jeans he/she will also get an invoice along with the package, or is it common to make a copy of the invoice and send it via email instead?

In Thailand: I would insist all the goods to be paid upfront first.

And what is an order confirmation, is it necessary to use? Or is it not so common that companies use that?

Order confirmation: well this has 3 purposes/uses

-Confirmation of their order - from them

-Confirmation of their order - acknowledgement from you that you have received their order

-Or confirmation from you that yes you do have the item in stock and ready to ship, not back order

I also wonder, what about purchase orders, what is the function of such a thing, it seems only some companies are using it? What happened with the good old way of just calling them up and say, i want to buy 2 pair of jeans?

Purchase order - there are 2 types

Seller purchase order - seller orders to buy things from other sellers - in writing in a formal form

Buyer purchase order - buyer orders to buy from seller - in writing in a formal form

Hope these help

Ok, yes it helps a lot, thanx, about order confirmation, is it common that companies use it, or is it just as common that companies dont use it?

And, do i send it out before i send out the invoice, or together, and do i send it by email or regular mail? What is most common?

About Purchase orders, would it be necessary for me to use a purchase order if i only want to buy some stationaries such as a few sheets of paper some file folders, and some pens from a company, or is PO usually only used when purchasing larger or more expensive goods?

The invoice should also be sent at the time of shipping as well, it will be needed for customs purposes.

Ah, so you are suggesting that 2 copies of the invoice should then be sent?

And also, now you are talking about shipping goods in and out of Thailand, right?

Does anyone know what the restrictions will be on sale of alcohol in shops and restaurants on Thursday and Friday? Will it be banned both days?

It seems everywhere is closed.. Was going to B/D party Thursday but moved to tomorrow. I hate getting drunk on Wednesdays.

I guess i am gonna have to stock up today then, although i can live without alcohol for almost a week ( ) Just the idea of knowing that i cant get it IF i want it, makes me wanna drink.

I know what an invoice is, but when is the usual time to send out an invoice, and how?

For example if i sell a product to a customer, lets say i plan to start to sell jeans over internet to customers here in Thailand.

Do i send an invoice together with the actual jeans, so when the customer receives the jeans he/she will also get an invoice along with the package, or is it common to make a copy of the invoice and send it via email instead?

And what is an order confirmation, is it necessary to use? Or is it not so common that companies use that?

I also wonder, what about purchase orders, what is the function of such a thing, it seems only some companies are using it? What happened with the good old way of just calling them up and say, i want to buy 2 pair of jeans?

If you are in doubt when Thais get paid, just watch the ATM machines. I do my best to avoid going to the ATM the first few days of the month.

So, are you suggesting that most thais are getting paid in the beginning of a month?

For SURE.

Getting paid on last day of the month, as Bendix does, is probably most common here...

GaryA's observation is quite correct: That's also the day the traffic is worst, as are the shops/ bars/ restaurants/ massage parlours etc you name it. Particularly if it falls on a Friday...

The reasoning is slightly different though than he suggests... Even most Thais can't blow their salary in a single day, so the spending spree spills over into first week of the following month...It's still normally end of month for pay rather than start...but just takes a few days for them to spend their month's salary

Well, i know quite a few westerners who also likes to spend the whole salary in the beginning of the month, my sister is one example, hehe

If you are in doubt when Thais get paid, just watch the ATM machines. I do my best to avoid going to the ATM the first few days of the month.

So, are you suggesting that most thais are getting paid in the beginning of a month?

2) If you are paid say 25th of the month, as you point out in a normal month you'll have been on payroll for 25 days, and not yet worked 5-6 days. You should still get paid for the full month, but it will be written into your contract that if you left you would be obliged to pay them back for the days paid not worked. Any under/overpayment is taken into account on leaving. They will take into account things like days not worked as you mention, as well as holidays not yet taken etc.

yeah, i figured this is the most common thing at least in Europe, when looking back at my employments, i have usually been payed around the 25th, but to be honest, i have never thought about how they have counted my salary...

Cant speak for all companies, but we pay on the last day of the calender month for the month just worked.

So if you start on 25th, you'd get paid on 31st, but only for a few days work.

Never heard about that where i come from, but it would be interesting to hear if this is common practice around here, to me it sounds like a logic thing to do, but yeah, never heard about it before.

That is not what he said - the person obtained a new passport because he needed a new passport. He still had to pay the 20k overstay fine and I am sure received a red overstay mark in his new passport.

Yeah, sorry i see that now, but still i am curious, how can it be so easy to obtain a B -visa just one week after this huge overstay, wouldnt immigration be hesitant to give this fellow (who after all, overstayed in the kingdom for so many years illegally) a B visa?

Just curious

Hi

An ex-colleague (German) of mine entered Thailand in 1985 overland from Malaysia, and on his first night in Thailand was robbed and had his passport stolen (among other things).

He stayed, illegal, got married to Thai woman too, had kids (marriage in temple, but no papers), worked illegal as teacher (his wife is personnel director in the school, comes in handy) and drove a car, without any license.

Never been asked for a passport in all the years.

Finally in 2006 he decided, all by himself, to get things straight - took a lawyer, got a new passport from the German embassy, paid 20k at immigration, flew to Germany and was back one week later with a valid non-B and has now got work permit and everything (still working as a teacher at that same school).

Is it really possible to fly out of Thailand with a shining new passport, without any previos records on Visa status etc? Would not immigration department be interested to know more about this?

What that means is then that any guy who has been staying here over time for a looong time would only have to get a new passport and by doing so, erase his Visa status and everything?

Sounds unlikely...

Arent the people at the airport, immigration department interested what his Visa status is?

When does companies usually pay the salary, in the end of a month or the beginning of the month after that?

If i start 29th of July, when can i expect to get my first payment? Is it common that companies pay in the end of August or in the beginning of September here in thailand?

If lets say around 25th of August, do i get a full month payment? How do they know i am gonna work for the rest of that month?

Someone have any knowledge about this?

Hmm, interesting.

Newbee, do you suggest that the amount of money you receive on one day is dependent on that particular month? that would mean that for example if i am sick for 3 days in June it will cost me more than if i am sick 3 days in august?

Ok, let me make it clear, i used "me" or "i", but i could have might as well used "someone", it is not important, its not about me personally, so don´t worry, i am not gonna quit a job anytime soon, but i curious how i works.

I am interested in how employers usually would count the salary for someone who is coming in late in one month, and drops out in the middle of another month, lets leave out all the other problems that might come up, i am only interested in how the salary would be counted in a regular situation.

Hi

Do you guys know how employers usually count a salary in Thailand.

I mean, if i earn a monthly salary of 30 000 baht, and start the 27th of June, and quit the 13th of august. What would be the standard way for the employer to count my salary during these months? Would he count 30 000 divided with 20 days (i work 5 days a week)? in order to know what i should earn in one day? But then again, some months have more than 20 work days.

Can someone help me out?