Thailand urged to open up to foreign skilled labour, cut red tape on foreign investment

[ChipButty]

2 minutes ago, Mr Meeseeks said:

I know of one that used to work for them. He is unemployed at the moment. 

No flight crew? never seen one

[Mr Meeseeks]

Just now, richard_smith237 said:

 

Nope, yet other successful Airlines source the best from a global pool of potential employees. 

 

PTT have never employed foreigners, Chevron used to employ a healthy mix of Foreigners and Thai’s, sourcing quality from a global pool of potential employees. International experience, mentoring, shared development was key in ensuring the continued technical evolution - Chevron has now gone ‘almost’ exclusively Thai whereas their Western counterparts are almost exclusively multinational because thats where the best people are sourced (from everywhere).

 

The best hotels do source from an international pool - Thailand also has excellent hotel management schools. 

This is an area where the rest of industry could look to see the success of international integration. 

The hotels are still at least 51% Thai owned. In this case it doesn’t seem to impact the high end chains, however the lodges smaller hotels will obviously suffer.

 

 

I know several foreigners that work for PTTEP, which is a part of PTT, so that is not true.

 

Chevron are pulling out of Thailand, and they got rid of nearly all their foreign staff in 2013 due to the price of oil sparking a major downturn in the industry.

[Mr Meeseeks]

2 minutes ago, ChipButty said:

No flight crew? never seen one

He was not flight crew.

 

Most of the Thai flight crews are ex-military pilots as far as I am aware.

[trainman34014]

The Cretins running Thailand have this delusional idea that Thai's are the smartest people on the Planet and they also have their head's rammed very far up their own rectum's.   The chances that the pertitent request will be listened to are less than zero !

[richard_smith237]

1 minute ago, Mr Meeseeks said:

I know several foreigners that work for PTTEP, which is a part of PTT, so that is not true.

 

Chevron are pulling out of Thailand, and they got rid of nearly all their foreign staff in 2013 due to the price of oil sparking a major downturn in the industry.

 

PTTEP outside of Thailand?  I know guys who work for PTTEP outside of Thailand (i.e. in Malaysia etc)

Does PTT inside Thailand employ any non-Thai’s ??

 

Why are Chevron pulling out o Thailand ? - Chevron's choice? or government ?

 

 

[mberbae]

It is appalling the way Thailand has kept Expats OUT of Thailand but who have

wives, families, houses and Businesses here. These are the actual people who can

help the Thai economy - Not a 40 strong Chinese tourist group.

[richard_smith237]

Just now, trainman34014 said:

The Cretins running Thailand have this delusional idea that Thai's are the smartest people on the Planet and they also have their head's rammed very far up their own rectum's.   The chances that the pertitent request will be listened to are less than zero !

 

Just like anywhere else there is an excellent pool of talented and smart people in Thailand. 

To get the best out of this excellent pool of talented and smart people they need to mix, work with and share ideas with excellent, talented and smart people from outside of Thailand. 

 

 

 

 

 

[TheFreqFlyer]

18 minutes ago, richard_smith237 said:

 

I agree with protecting ‘local’ interest, however, this comes at the cost of development. 

 

I personally know two businesses who moved out of Thailand because operating in Thailand was prohibitive. 

These companies now have offices in London, New York, California and Vietnam - Both CEO’s have discussed how moving out of Thailand made their business easier to run (they are not large multinationals and employed about 20-30 staff in Thailand). 

 

 

 

Obviously we’re not talking about opening up Thailand to allow taxi drivers from anywhere to enter the fray (imagine the fights) Thailand would be full of back-packers, Africans & Indians driving Grab Taxi’s !

 

It would be good to see the opportunities for skilled labor (with proven qualifications) for the building and electrics trade. 

Specialised tradesmen who can oversee the quality of workmanship on various projects. 

 

It would be good to see opportunities for Foreign Doctors to work in Thailand’s hospitals. I’d like to see the level of accountability for malpractice up to international standards. 

 

It would be good too opportunities for ‘foreign startups’ to set Thailand as their base and allow new and innovative local development. 

 

And first it would be good to see the eradication of the 51% Thai ownership rule which is overwhelmingly damaging to local investment and primarily serves to allow ‘connected and wealthy’ Thai’s to capitalise on large multinational foreign companies wishing to operate within Thailand, but also prevents others from doing so. 

 

Just look at the availability of products in Thailand vs other countries such as the UAE.

 

 

 

I've seen foreign doctors work in Thai hospitals. Had one do the medical for my work permit back in 2008 (at a private hospital of course). Have also seen Filipino nurses work here. Even if not large in number, they exist. 

 

I don't know what business it is that you claim is better off in Vietnam, but I suspect this is largely related to that country's much lower labor costs and nothing else (unless it's in the craft beer brewing business, where Vietnam is a better environment to operate in for small scale brewers). 

 

Vietnam is just as nationalistic as Thailand and even more homogeneous, and they definitely don't take kindly to foreigners telling them what to do (one look at their history tells you why). I've worked there and while it was pleasant enough, I got the feeling they thought I was an expensive liability and eventually let me go (the company wasn't doing very well financially). I'm sure there was also a sense of "I told you so" because while I lasted much longer than the previous American couple who were marketing experts, they essentially didn't bring in any revenue for the company, but were paid 3 times more than even I was (as an engineer) for producing fancy graphs that produced no results. So after just 3 months, they were both fired. 

 

Most of my fellow staff were jealous because I got paid several times more than them, only worked 5 days a week (they had to work 6) and worked normal hours from 9am to 5.30 pm with a 90 minute lunch break, while they worked 7.30am to 5.30pm with the same 90 minute break. Personally, I didn't care for the long lunch break, though it would be enough time to drive into town for lunch and make it back by 1pm, rather than eat the pretty dreary cafeteria food. 

 

Vietnam is also full of regulation and even hiring a foreigner is fraught with difficulty. Most of the time agents have to resort to paying bribes under the table just to get you the paperwork to make you legal. I wasn't even offered a legal work permit the whole time I was there! 

 

If a company wants to operate with similar regulations, respect for intellectual property, minimal corruption and doing business in a similar fashion to what they're used to back home in the west, then they should head for Hong Kong or Singapore, because they're not going to find a similar operating environment to back home anywhere in developing Asia, that's for sure! 

 

The complaints about Thailand are very much the same (more or less) as in Myanmar, Laos, Cambodia, Vietnam, the Philippines, Indonesia, China etc.

 

China is probably the worst - they are actively trying to rid the country of foreigners. I know of a high level Ford Executive based in Hangzhou for almost 2 decades who, over a year ago now was transferred back to his native Australia with regular business travel to oversee operations in South Africa and Latin America. Like other foreign (and local) companies there, there has been a trend towards localizing staff. Even in Laos, which lacks skilled labor, I've heard of westerners being let go in favor of skilled locals (where available) or skilled Asian foreigners from neighboring countries. Westerners cost too much, rarely speak the local lingo and don't fit in nearly as well as fellow Asians. 

[Mr Meeseeks]

Just now, richard_smith237 said:

 

PTTEP outside of Thailand?  I know guys who work for PTTEP outside of Thailand (i.e. in Malaysia etc)

Does PTT inside Thailand employ any non-Thai’s ??

 

Why are Chevron pulling out o Thailand ? - Chevron's choice? or government ?

 

 

The guys I know work for PTTEP in Thailand. There are not many but then they have been attempting to nationalise the industry for a number of years. 

 

Chevron's plans are to pull out of Asia entirely I believe, so I would assume that has come at a board level and is not due to any specific nation's government. They are already in process of relinquishing their biggest assets in the Gulf of Thailand to PTTEP and they will probably be left with only a stake in a smaller field after those transfers are complete. The chopper base in NST is closing and all flights are being relocated back to SKL. 

[richard_smith237]

Just now, mberbae said:

It is appalling the way Thailand has kept Expats OUT of Thailand but who have

wives, families, houses and Businesses here. These are the actual people who can

help the Thai economy - Not a 40 strong Chinese tourist group.

 

Thats completely wrong: Thailand has not Kept out those with Wives, Families and Business here. 

Those legally married (with a Marriage certificate) and those with Thai Children (foreigner is named on the Birth Certificate) or those with Business here (i.e. have a Non-Imm B visa / work permit) have been permitted entry to Thailand 5 months. 

 

Those who have no visa status, can’t prove marital status etc have been unable to apply for a CoE and return. 

 

There are some who were on the receiving end of despicable treatment (i.e. those Non-O retirees stuck outside Thailand). 

 

But, to claim  'Thailand has kept Expats OUT of Thailand  who have wives, families, houses and Businesses here’  is wholly incorrect. 

 

 

 

[rocketdave]

There are many highly skilled retired westerners over here already, I myself was a senior aerospace quality engineer but with 51% required Thai ownership they are not going to listen to the junior partner even when they are right!

[Rimmer]

Some troll posts have been removed

[TheFreqFlyer]

7 minutes ago, trainman34014 said:

The Cretins running Thailand have this delusional idea that Thai's are the smartest people on the Planet and they also have their head's rammed very far up their own rectum's.   The chances that the pertitent request will be listened to are less than zero !

I don't think it's that. That's what complaining farang say because Thailand isn't as open as the USA is. 

 

It's partly the fact that (if you haven't already figured it out by now) that Thailand remains a 3rd world country, so swinging open the doors to foreigners, turning it into a multicultural country overnight and implementing 1st world regulations, improving infrastructure, intellectual property rights, accountability for malpractice and 1000s of other things simply isn't going to happen overnight. 

 

Thailand is not America. It's a small country with a medium sized economy, which, if it were completely opened to the rest of the world would not likely boost the living standards of the country like you think. The Chinese would buy up the entire country, real estate and land prices would go through the roof, and the poorest Thais would probably become even poorer. 

 

Regulations on doing business need to be eased but slowly and carefully, with an emphasis on particular sectors of the economy, such as companies wanting to invest in the EEC. 

[TheFreqFlyer]

3 minutes ago, rocketdave said:

There are many highly skilled retired westerners over here already, I myself was a senior aerospace quality engineer but with 51% required Thai ownership they are not going to listen to the junior partner even when they are right!

There are ways of starting a 100% foreign owned company. An aerospace based business would be foolish not to invest under BOI rules where 100% foreign ownership is allowed. 

[BobinBKK]

4 hours ago, nobodysfriend said:

 

He does not know that Xenophobia towards foreigners is a fixed part of thai culture by now ?

The average Thai is afraid of foreigners investing too much in Thailand , as this could mean that foreigners could gain some ' influence ' ...

Influential persons have to be thai only in Thailand .

Foreigners are welcome only if they spend a LOT of money here , and,  after this , leave .

Foreigners need to be surveyed all the time , they think , as they could do something Thais may not like .

For example being in a position , ( become the boss of an enterprise or company ) , where they could give orders to Thais .

For many ( freedom loving , 55 ) , Thais that is unthinkable .

Foreigners are " Aliens ' in this country and it will stay this way , even the government changes .

They do not have the same rights as Thais , and many Thais appreciate this .

 

People here think different from how people think in a more developed and civilized country .

That is part of their culture and will probably never change .

I would like that thai people who are living in or visiting a foreign country get exactly the same treatment as foreigners in Thailand .

I could not have said this better myself. Did you happen to notice that this group of ambassadors are also part of the political and military alliance against China? Thailand aligning itself with westerners and a democratic alliance of countries does not bode well for the Thai Chinese relationship. Once bitter enemies of the United States both Vietnam and Japan are aligned with America against China.

[robbioff]

3 hours ago, lemonjelly said:

Meanwhile, god knows how many foreign English language teachers in Thailand are now without work permits and correct visas because the Thai authorities couldn’t organize themselves to accommodate this.

I’ve got a valid work permit, reentry permit. Still waiting in Sri Lanka (8 months now) to be allowed back in!!! 
Can’t get my name on “the list”....

[FritsSikkink]

5 hours ago, nobodysfriend said:

 

He does not know that Xenophobia towards foreigners is a fixed part of thai culture by now ?

The average Thai is afraid of foreigners investing too much in Thailand , as this could mean that foreigners could gain some ' influence ' ...

Influential persons have to be thai only in Thailand .

Foreigners are welcome only if they spend a LOT of money here , and,  after this , leave .

Foreigners need to be surveyed all the time , they think , as they could do something Thais may not like .

For example being in a position , ( become the boss of an enterprise or company ) , where they could give orders to Thais .

For many ( freedom loving , 55 ) , Thais that is unthinkable .

Foreigners are " Aliens ' in this country and it will stay this way , even the government changes .

They do not have the same rights as Thais , and many Thais appreciate this .

 

People here think different from how people think in a more developed and civilized country .

That is part of their culture and will probably never change .

I would like that thai people who are living in or visiting a foreign country get exactly the same treatment as foreigners in Thailand .

What a load of BS, there are enough multinationals here with foreign bosses who direct Thai employees (me being one).

You know nothing about doing business in Thailand or the status of foreigners who have a good job.

[John Drake]

I've yet to see a picture in which DeSombre wears a suit that fits him. And why does he pose like Robert Conrad in a battery commercial?

[Katipo]

So many simple and straight forward solutions that would lead to tangible economic benefits. And yet..... ????

[John Drake]

Plenty of foreign skilled labor is on its way. It's just that it will be all Chinese, working on the railroad and living in that Chinese-only city planned for the EEC.

[John Drake]

8 minutes ago, FritsSikkink said:

What a load of BS, there are enough multinationals here with foreign bosses who direct Thai employees (me being one).

You know nothing about doing business in Thailand or the status of foreigners who have a good job.

 

Must be some job you've got, because you seem to spend all day posting on TVF.

[Mike k]

5 hours ago, Destiny1990 said:

The amount of paperwork just for a simple visa extension is horrible here and very high risk for all sorts of identity theft.

Its very far away from a visitor friendly approach ????????

I just completed my retirement visa this is my 4th year with nothing changed all I should have needed would be a copy of my bank statement the application forms and passport. Instead I had copies of stuff they already had 3 trips because the ( blank) kept adding things instead of telling me the first time or giving an itemized list 

[Bim Smith]

Too late they just sold out yesterday to China. Trade deal signed. Move on boys. I would say try Africa but China also beat you to it.

[rupert the bear]

there s some interested posts here a few light hearted ones too,IMO i think the fact that corruptions so rampant and the feudal and autocratic nature of the society is also a problem,your meant to do as your told not question your betters ,see that quite obviously displayed in the democracy protests.racism is also a problem as people are never respected from overseas as we are never fully engaged as fellow human beings.in the long term little will change so i suggest engage elsewhere ,its not the only game in town and more people are realsing that as regional countries are offering better terms and better educated populations

[FritsSikkink]

1 hour ago, John Drake said:

 

Must be some job you've got, because you seem to spend all day posting on TVF.

If you could count, you would come up with an average of 3 a day.

[stigar]

DTAC is owned by the norwegian company TELENOR

[John Drake]

22 minutes ago, FritsSikkink said:

If you could count, you would come up with an average of 3 a day.

 

Every day, then. I thought so. Can't let a day go, can you? What sort of high flying tycoon that you claim to be feels the need to check in on TVF three times every single day?

[CM Dad]

2 hours ago, John Drake said:

I've yet to see a picture in which DeSombre wears a suit that fits him. And why does he pose like Robert Conrad in a battery commercial?

DeSombre is a totally unqualified Trump appointee who got the job simply because he donated money to Donnie and kisses his behind.  He will be gone soon after January, 2021.

[TERMINATOR3AB]

Food  for thought  Thailand about  workers   or  anyone  coming to Thailand  now

Australia  had all but  beaten  the  Covid  Virus

Then  3  weeks ago   In our State  of  SA   an overseas visitor  in  14   lockup  somehow  let the Virus out into  the community

Now  there  is a  panic  in the Majot city   as  virus  numbers  start to climb  soon  they  will go into possible  lockdown

All  other  States  have blocked  SA  from entry 

Just shows  only takes  one visitor  to your country  to start this Virus  up  yet  you want to open it up to the  starters  of this  Virus ... China

Sit  back wait for  a vacine  the world  is too  risky  for any travel   now  ..I worry  about my Thai wife  

If Thailand  gets  the  Virus  to  take hold ... you will never stop it ....  with your  conditions  and  so many  poor  living in poor  housing

Good Luck Thailand 

[Sean60]

Come and invest in Thailand. We will take your money, that you like <deleted> for being faring and will see to it you go bankrupt and go back to where ever you come from.

This is the Thai governments strategy. 9 months of border lock down and no relief package to business owners. In fact they have made things even more expensive.

No protection of foreign investment!!!!!!

Lots of BS from this government. No one trust them any longer. Laughing stock for the entire world!!!!