Average salary career ladder for expats/Thais

[punchandjudy]

Just out of interest, I am wondering for expats (Thais too) what the general salary potential and path is.

 

I know that in general from what I know, for Thais coming out of university with a degree who can speak English, salary tends to start at 30,000 Baht per month for an office job. 

 

This is an extremely broad question but for an average Thai person who is bilingual working in business, what could they end up earning down the line in terms of year on year increase?

 

For expats in business, young university graduates coming to Bangkok, what could they expect from an office job initially?

 

In summary, does anyone have a link to any graph or table which shows average salaries for expats / Thais working in business in Bangkok?

 

I would like to have some reference of what a fair salary in Bangkok is. (Not sure if anything in life is fair to be honest ????)

 

 

[BritManToo]

14 minutes ago, punchandjudy said:

Thais coming out of university with a degree who can speak English, salary tends to start at 30,000 Baht per month for an office job. 

 

Thais, depends where they are, BK 25k, CM 15k (and everywhere else)

30k would be a very generous employer.

 

For an expat to get a decent wage, you would probably need to be employed in your home country, then be assigned to Thailand with a full expat package.

Edited November 5, 2018 by BritManToo

[OneMoreFarang]

26 minutes ago, punchandjudy said:

can speak English

"Hello, how are you?"

Now I want 30k per months.

It seems many people have very different definitions of "can speak English"...

 

And about the differences between foreigners and Thais: It seems that difference is getting smaller. Decades ago a foreigner could easily make double or even more than a Thai in the same position. According to a couple of people that margin is a lot smaller now.

[jackdd]

Depends also alot on what the person had studied and what kind of job the person is doing.

Average starting salary for a normal random office job in Bangkok after having graduated university is more in the region of 20k, of course there are some people who start with 30k (software engineer in a bigger IT company or similar), but on the other side of the spectrum are also people who start as low as 12 or 13k (having studied "english" and starting work in a hotel for example), or people who work in accounting start somewhere in the 15k region.

I've met Thais in their thirties who make 100k+, but they were either in a management position or doctors in a private hospital.

Edited November 5, 2018 by jackdd

[Crash999]

I work in manufacturing and export. Thais without any experience can expect 15-20k rising to around 25-30k after 2 years or so if progressing well. Managers 50k-125k depending on position and capability. For some general management positions with niche skillsets Thais can command salaries similar to foreigners. 200-400k plus benefits. 

[scorecard]

20 hours ago, BritManToo said:

Thais, depends where they are, BK 25k, CM 15k (and everywhere else)

30k would be a very generous employer.

 

For an expat to get a decent wage, you would probably need to be employed in your home country, then be assigned to Thailand with a full expat package.

I suggest 25,000Baht a month starting salary even with a degree and can speak English is doubtful, from my experience working as a consultant for many Thai companies 16,000 would be closer and plenty will just pay the legal minimum of 15,000Baht for new graduates. Some might offer a small jump after passing probation which is a hot potato, plenty of fresh young graduates don't pass probation and plenty of these guys might stay but very doubtful they will ever get any promotions.  

 

Can speak English is a complex / confusing item, in regard to salary there is no solid or structured approach specific to this point. 

 

Edited November 6, 2018 by scorecard

[Cheops]

1 hour ago, scorecard said:

I suggest 25,000Baht a month starting salary even with a degree and can speak English is doubtful, from my experience working as a consultant for many Thai companies 16,000 would be closer and plenty will just pay the legal minimum of 15,000Baht for new graduates. Some might offer a small jump after passing probation which is a hot potato, plenty of fresh young graduates don't pass probation and plenty of these guys might stay but very doubtful they will ever get any promotions.  

 

Can speak English is a complex / confusing item, in regard to salary there is no solid or structured approach specific to this point. 

 

Starting salary for an engineering position fresh from uni at our company is about 25k. That is even when they are not proficient in English yet. This is in Bangkok. Thais and foreigners get similar salaries if on local contract. Depending on experience and position this can be 25k (starting engineering job) to > 500k (GM)

[melvinmelvin]

2 minutes ago, Cheops said:

Starting salary for an engineering position fresh from uni at our company is about 25k. That is even when they are not proficient in English yet. This is in Bangkok. Thais and foreigners get similar salaries if on local contract. Depending on experience and position this can be 25k (starting engineering job) to > 500k (GM)

former lady friend - master in political science - early 30s

very good English

working for a steel/metal refinement company - specializing in corrosion protection

she QA manager / 35 k month

 

another lady, early 30s, good English - bright - working for True move.

deputy shop manager - working in shops close to big UNIs - getting % of sales

base salary 35k and then + %age, making shitloads of money just below saen/month

 

 

 

 

 

 

[DualSportBiker]

My first job here in '91 started on 25K. By end of year 1 I was on 100K plus commission. I now work for 40K base! But I get excellent commission, however the sales cycle is at least a year...

 

My Mrs makes 175K as GM of a software company. She is 42 with a bachelors in IT from a better-than-average (but not excellent) uni. Her English is pretty damn good and she worked in Singapore for 10 years. Her classmate from high school and uni is call centre senior manager for an international insurance Co. and makes only 150K despite having a masters degree. Her English is poor to moderate.

[Wake Up]

If you are young, pretty and speak English you can make a better salary living with and taking care of an older expat. More than a college graduate. ????

[scorecard]

5 hours ago, melvinmelvin said:

former lady friend - master in political science - early 30s

very good English

working for a steel/metal refinement company - specializing in corrosion protection

she QA manager / 35 k month

 

another lady, early 30s, good English - bright - working for True move.

deputy shop manager - working in shops close to big UNIs - getting % of sales

base salary 35k and then + %age, making shitloads of money just below saen/month

 

 

 

 

 

 

Both examples way outside of your basic new graduate folks who are just wanting a job and hopefully security and very probably (not a criticism) starting at the bottom in a typical Thai company which doesn't encourage innovation etc, and regardless of language abilities and brain washed into simple replies and being very polite. 

 

 

[melvinmelvin]

1 minute ago, scorecard said:

Both examples way outside of your basic new graduate folks who are just wanting a job and hopefully security and very probably (not a criticism) starting at the bottom in a typical Thai company which doesn't encourage innovation etc, and regardless of language abilities and brain washed into simple replies and being very polite. 

 

 

 

I don't really know but maybe you are right, pretty awful if you are though.

 

[khunPer]

On 11/5/2018 at 12:45 PM, punchandjudy said:

I would like to have some reference of what a fair salary in Bangkok is.

There is a complete Thai 2018 Salary Guide for download (PDF) here...????

[scorecard]

11 minutes ago, melvinmelvin said:

 

I don't really know but maybe you are right, pretty awful if you are though.

 

Sure, let's be honest the description I made is the majority of the workforce, very big numbers of people, in any country. 

 

From the PDF Khun Per kindly posted:

 

Edited November 6, 2018 by scorecard

[scorecard]

5 hours ago, melvinmelvin said:

former lady friend - master in political science - early 30s

very good English

working for a steel/metal refinement company - specializing in corrosion protection

she QA manager / 35 k month

 

another lady, early 30s, good English - bright - working for True move.

deputy shop manager - working in shops close to big UNIs - getting % of sales

base salary 35k and then + %age, making shitloads of money just below saen/month

 

 

 

 

 

 

Both examples way outside of your basic new graduate folks who are just wanting a job and hopefully security and very probably (not a criticism) starting at the bottom in a typical Thai company which doesn't encourage innovation etc, and regardless of language abilities and brain washed into simple replies and being very polite. 

 

[scorecard]

7 hours ago, Crash999 said:

I work in manufacturing and export. Thais without any experience can expect 15-20k rising to around 25-30k after 2 years or so if progressing well. Managers 50k-125k depending on position and capability. For some general management positions with niche skillsets Thais can command salaries similar to foreigners. 200-400k plus benefits. 

Both examples way outside of your basic new graduate folks who are just wanting a job and hopefully security and very probably (not a criticism) starting at the bottom in a typical Thai company which doesn't encourage innovation etc, and regardless of language abilities and brain washed into simple replies and being very polite. 

 

[scorecard]

5 hours ago, Cheops said:

Starting salary for an engineering position fresh from uni at our company is about 25k. That is even when they are not proficient in English yet. This is in Bangkok. Thais and foreigners get similar salaries if on local contract. Depending on experience and position this can be 25k (starting engineering job) to > 500k (GM)

Engineering position (what field of engineering?), not your standard new graduate clerical worker or similar.

[Cheops]

1 hour ago, scorecard said:

Engineering position (what field of engineering?), not your standard new graduate clerical worker or similar.

Electronics, physics and mechanical engineering all start at about 25k in our company. We have around 400 engineering positions (big company). No, a clerk will start at a lot less.

[manarak]

I guess only few posters here are in touch with Thais who are both well educated and highly skilled.

 

I know for example about young software developers working in Bangkok who make 100k - 150k developing apps on Android, iOS.

 

That's what I like about the "Thai salary ladder" OP asked about. Be very skilled and in demand then you will earn a lot.

In the Western European countries, for some silly reasons, a very skilled and productive software developer will earn only 2 to 3 times of what a standard employee earns, which I feel is deeply unfair, especially when considering the much higher income tax bracket... net salary is probably just about twice the level of a base employee.

[Crash999]

11 hours ago, scorecard said:

Both examples way outside of your basic new graduate folks who are just wanting a job and hopefully security and very probably (not a criticism) starting at the bottom in a typical Thai company which doesn't encourage innovation etc, and regardless of language abilities and brain washed into simple replies and being very polite. 

 

OP is asking for an average idea of salary. Certainly agree that someone who is desperate for a job will take anything, but there's a 15k minimum for someone with a bachelor degree. We must pay more as we require a level of English and capability. If hiring for too low people will jump ship as soon as they get a better offer anyway. 

[melvinmelvin]

27 minutes ago, Crash999 said:

OP is asking for an average idea of salary. Certainly agree that someone who is desperate for a job will take anything, but there's a 15k minimum for someone with a bachelor degree. We must pay more as we require a level of English and capability. If hiring for too low people will jump ship as soon as they get a better offer anyway. 

this bachelor degree / 15k minimum thing

I thought that requirement was for government employees, ie not for the private sector

 

[Pib]

Quote

 

For expats in business, young university graduates coming to Bangkok, what could they expect from an office job initially?

 

In summary, does anyone have a link to any graph or table which shows average salaries for expats / Thais working in business in Bangkok?

 

 

Mr Google says:

 

https://teleport.org/cities/bangkok/salaries/

 

https://adecco.co.th/salary-guide

 

 

[watboy]

I work on the finance side for a mega Thai conglomerate and I pay fresh Thai grads 35k/month. With 3-4 years of experience the pay is 50k. With 6-7 years exp and a masters, you can get to 100k. 200k could be reached 4 years later, though most leave before then. I've paid several people in their mid 30's over 300k. Pay has risen rapidly over the last 2-3 years and I have to make career plans for my staff and the expectation is for promotions every 2-3 years. Otherwise I cannot attract or retain the people I need. Have never hired an expat.

 

This is well above average, but its not as rare as some may think. Most of my team did not go to international high schools or western universities, most are from Chula, Thammasat, and Abac .

[scorecard]

4 hours ago, Crash999 said:

OP is asking for an average idea of salary. Certainly agree that someone who is desperate for a job will take anything, but there's a 15k minimum for someone with a bachelor degree. We must pay more as we require a level of English and capability. If hiring for too low people will jump ship as soon as they get a better offer anyway. 

Sure and finding and keeping the right staff is a conundrum in any country / any business. Additionally all companies need to watch operating costs and be careful they don't let their salary bills get out of control. It's not easy to balance all these factors. 

 

Different point, have you noticed the large numbers of Thai new graduates who can't find work, same every year, many of these folks can't wait around for the dream job and higher salary, they need to pay the rent and yes many of them end up taking any job.

 

Having said that I'm well aware that a certain % of new graduates (in many counties) believe they are entitled to higher positions (even managerial positions) because they have just completed a degree.

 

I've had plenty of MBA students who graduated from their bachelor studies, no work experience, and couldn't get their 'entitled' dream job, so they started their MBA studies.

 

It doesn't take long to identify the bachelor graduates with no work experience and what also sometimes happens is in small team work the bachelor and a few years work experience run rings around the no experience guys and even reject them from the team discussions and research to develop a good submission to the case study and build their chances of an A for that course. 

 

Sad but it's not surprising that many companies won't employ the no work experience MBA holders except in lower positions and at an appropriate salary for the lower job.

 

 

Edited November 7, 2018 by scorecard

[Crash999]

2 hours ago, scorecard said:

Sad but it's not surprising that many companies won't employ the no work experience MBA holders except in lower positions and at an appropriate salary for the lower job.

I used to be one of those people. Couldn’t find a job after graduating with a bachelor degree and no experience so I did an internship and went straight for an MBA after. 

 

Ended up taking a job in Thailand earning just 40k when I first started!

[scorecard]

3 hours ago, watboy said:

I work on the finance side for a mega Thai conglomerate and I pay fresh Thai grads 35k/month. With 3-4 years of experience the pay is 50k. With 6-7 years exp and a masters, you can get to 100k. 200k could be reached 4 years later, though most leave before then. I've paid several people in their mid 30's over 300k. Pay has risen rapidly over the last 2-3 years and I have to make career plans for my staff and the expectation is for promotions every 2-3 years. Otherwise I cannot attract or retain the people I need. Have never hired an expat.

 

This is well above average, but its not as rare as some may think. Most of my team did not go to international high schools or western universities, most are from Chula, Thammasat, and Abac .

I'm not doubting your numbers and not trying to be critical. Could you please share some information on why you pay new graduates with no work experience 35K Baht a month?

 

Not doubting or criticizing, just curious.

 

Thanks.

 

 

[watboy]

18 hours ago, scorecard said:

I'm not doubting your numbers and not trying to be critical. Could you please share some information on why you pay new graduates with no work experience 35K Baht a month?

 

Not doubting or criticizing, just curious.

 

Thanks.

 

 

 

If I don't pay that level, someone else will. We want the smart, adaptive, results oriented, problem solvers. They are not easy to find and others want them as well. The quality named investment banks and consulting firms (both foreign and local), are paying this rate, if not w direct salaries, with much larger bonuses. Increasingly, tech companies (Facebook, Line, Google all have expanded their Bangkok offices as well as a number of tech startups) are becoming popular employers for young people. They also either pay well, or offer the "glamour" and supposed "work/life balance" of a startup that many kids want.

 

My department is small (a dozen people), but I need quality not quantity. We have other similar size departments that also need talent and all the big Thai companies now have their own in-house strategy, corporate finance and other specialized units, that also need quality over quantity and are paying near this level as well. We have other department that require much larger headcount, but they tend to be more processing type work than analytical and the pay much lower than my dept.

 

I get most of my fresh hires out of Thammasat and Chula's BBA English program or ABAC. You do not need to be fluent in English, but you cannot be afraid of it either. In search for talent, I've cast my net wider to other universities, and while I have found some great kids, its a much much lower hit rate. Recruiting is such a massive resource drain, especially considering that kids these days change jobs every 2-3 years, that we set our pay at the top decile so that talent comes to us and we don't have to go looking as much.

 

Lastly, when you find the right hire, its totally worth paying them that much.