Study Regular Thai Massage, Easy To Find Job, What Income?

[aehn]

I have a friend (thai) who wants to study massage, how much would it cost to go and study massage?

And after the study, is it hard to find a job, or do you think it will be easy to find a job?

And finally, what about income, i know it will probably not get her rich, but i just want to get an idea, what a regular salary would be.

Edited May 10, 2008 by aehn

[jstumbo]

I would imagine that in most places it would not pay much above minimum wage in Thailand. Maybe if you were in some high end place you might make more.

[londonthai]

I have a friend (thai) who wants to study massage, how much would it cost to go and study massage?

And after the study, is it hard to find a job, or do you think it will be easy to find a job?

And finally, what about income, i know it will probably not get her rich, but i just want to get an idea, what a regular salary would be.

30h courses some 7k, 60h some 11k - up to 800h spread over 1 year at wat pho

not easy to fing work if you don't have connections/friends.

~10k/month - more than security guard, but hard work

[Pepe']

I have heard. Not confirmed. perhaps an "urban myth."

Only Thais are allowed, legally to do Tradtional Thai massage in LOS...

[ralph444]

if said lady is quite attractive and willing to do specials she can do quite well for herself. if she looks like the majority of thai massage women then you are correct in that she wont get rich.

[aehn]

I would imagine that in most places it would not pay much above minimum wage in Thailand. Maybe if you were in some high end place you might make more.

yeah, that is what i would guess too.

[aehn]

I have a friend (thai) who wants to study massage, how much would it cost to go and study massage?

And after the study, is it hard to find a job, or do you think it will be easy to find a job?

And finally, what about income, i know it will probably not get her rich, but i just want to get an idea, what a regular salary would be.

30h courses some 7k, 60h some 11k - up to 800h spread over 1 year at wat pho

not easy to fing work if you don't have connections/friends.

~10k/month - more than security guard, but hard work

yeah, my friend mentioned now that there were one school that would be as cheap as 3-4000 baht, and another for around 7-8000 baht, she was almost sure both of them would give her a massage certification, but it makes me wonder, the cheaper alternative, would the certificate be worth anything? Or does most massage places hire only people with the "correct" certificate, that is, the one that is more expensive?

And you mention it is not easy to find work, are you sure about that, or are you taking a guess? According to my friend , who is by the way guessing, it would be really easy to find a job, but i am not sure i trust her judgement all the time, heh.

[aehn]

I have heard. Not confirmed. perhaps an "urban myth."

Only Thais are allowed, legally to do Tradtional Thai massage in LOS...

Not a problem, as i mentioned in my first post, my friend is thai-nationality. And i think it is correct, under normal circumstances, farangs aren´t allowed to do those kind of jobs.

[aehn]

-----double post----------

Edited May 11, 2008 by aehn

[londonthai]

depending where is thailand the price can varry - Bangkok/chang mai, where the most famous schools are, it's 7k/30h. Some courses around the country would be government/charity subsidised/sponsored. I know about a free saturday course in bangkok around puthamonthon area, on Suan Luang 2 market.

as to certificates they are less important, than what actually the student have learned. Going for the private tuition at one othe massage salons would give you one teacher-one/two student ratio, in the big and famous school some 10 students in the class.

she won't be able to find work straith after the short course, without any experience. Let her try and she will know (or she will be lucky).

on top of it - worth to learn the other techniques - oil, herbal and foot massage

[aehn]

depending where is thailand the price can varry - Bangkok/chang mai, where the most famous schools are, it's 7k/30h. Some courses around the country would be government/charity subsidised/sponsored. I know about a free saturday course in bangkok around puthamonthon area, on Suan Luang 2 market.

as to certificates they are less important, than what actually the student have learned. Going for the private tuition at one othe massage salons would give you one teacher-one/two student ratio, in the big and famous school some 10 students in the class.

she won't be able to find work straith after the short course, without any experience. Let her try and she will know (or she will be lucky).

on top of it - worth to learn the other techniques - oil, herbal and foot massage

Ok, i guess she will go for a less famous school, cheaper, the one for around 3-4009 baht, but will hopefully provide her with enough competence, i mean, yeah, i understand she will not be able to compete with the other ones who already have experience, but hopefully, at least she will be able to compete with the other fresh students.

Thank you very much for the info

/aehn

[jfchandler]

I have friends who have regular Thai massage shops in BKK...

Anytime they hire a new staff, the applicant is required to do a trial oil and Thai massage for the senior ladies who already work there. Based on that performance, they decide either yea or nae....

I keep telling them to hire some more babes... And instead, they keep hiring older ladies with whom they typically have some personal/family/past work, etc. connection...

[ralph444]

sorry to offend.

but the money goes to the babes is quite right.

no fun getting massaged by older portly women who pick noses while waiting for customaa!

[mmushr00m]

I think the $$ is split 50-50 between the masseur and the shop. (in my area anyways)

[njpski]

The price for Thai traditional massages is usually around 300 baht per hour. The owner of the premises typically takes 66% leaving the lady on 100 per hour.

Most massage shops have a number of masseuses available and the ladies take it in turn to provide the massage.

all being well for the masseuse, she will get 7 or 8 hours work for the day = max say 800 baht for the day (after being available from noon to 2 am!!!)

[rewket]

My gf and i went to massage place very often in bangkok and after talking to some ladies, we found out most of them only make 300baht a day for the most part..

Theres always 12 of them, not everyday you get a lot of people in. lots of places are empty for days at times. thats why tipping is important.

out of all the places i went to, the only one that the ladies seem to get a good 7hours was on soi 11/2 ... its a small place in the small street, they have hotel+massage school.. very good ambiance, always full. other places were for the most always empty.

Only place where they made good money is near soi 22. the soi with all the restaurants. at the end theres a 'friend' massage place.. all young sexy girls

[Andrew Hicks]

I have a friend (thai) who wants to study massage, how much would it cost to go and study massage?

And after the study, is it hard to find a job, or do you think it will be easy to find a job?

And finally, what about income, i know it will probably not get her rich, but i just want to get an idea, what a regular salary would be.

Many masseuses have no formal qualifications but are given lessons by someone with experience. A small massage parlour will take on a willing person and accomodate them and teach them in the shop, on the job as it were, for a few thousand baht. If it works out, they might be employed after that, sharing the take for the massages they do.

As always there seems to be huge over-supply of massage shops that depresses the profits.

As always it's connections but if you could get a licence as a beach masseuse on Koh Samet say, there is good money to be made. They charge 250 and hour, sometimes giving 50 to the resort whose frontage they are using. Otherwise there are virtually no overheads. With some hair graiding, nail painting etc, they can make a thousand a day when things are busy.

Most of them are strong old farmers' wives and do a good massage.

[burman]

The price for Thai traditional massages is usually around 300 baht per hour.

It's about half that in most parts of Bangkok. Even in a very expat/tourist area like Sukhumvit Soi 23 there is a very good massage shop, only 100 baht an hour. Tony's Massage is the name if I am allowed to give them a plug.

[ralph444]

anytime a massage parlour is stocked with young halfway decent lookers it is not thai massage they are selling!

[aehn]

I have a friend (thai) who wants to study massage, how much would it cost to go and study massage?

And after the study, is it hard to find a job, or do you think it will be easy to find a job?

And finally, what about income, i know it will probably not get her rich, but i just want to get an idea, what a regular salary would be.

Many masseuses have no formal qualifications but are given lessons by someone with experience. A small massage parlour will take on a willing person and accomodate them and teach them in the shop, on the job as it were, for a few thousand baht. If it works out, they might be employed after that, sharing the take for the massages they do.

As always there seems to be huge over-supply of massage shops that depresses the profits.

As always it's connections but if you could get a licence as a beach masseuse on Koh Samet say, there is good money to be made. They charge 250 and hour, sometimes giving 50 to the resort whose frontage they are using. Otherwise there are virtually no overheads. With some hair graiding, nail painting etc, they can make a thousand a day when things are busy.

Most of them are strong old farmers' wives and do a good massage.

Do you need a special licence for doing massage at the beach? Isnt a massage licence good for all kinds of places, i mean locationwise?

Do you think it is easier to find a job on some of those tourist/island/beach places than BKK?

I know its probably hard to estimate, and maybe it is really the same, just curious what your thoughts is about this?

[londonthai]

And instead, they keep hiring older ladies with whom they typically have some personal/family/past work, etc. connection...

those older ladies know how to work, have an experience and are trustworthy

[torrenova]

I know nothing about the courses except that if the OP's friend wanted to say work at the Marriott in the Spa then she'd need an education and a degree in the relevant area coupled with practical experience. At a push her salary would be in the mid teens to begin with.

Go down the simplistic route with on the job training or a recognised course then she'd get about Bt80 or Bt90 from the Bt200 an hour which does make the tips very important. However even 3 jobs a day of which 1 is a 2 hour job would give her something over Bt500 with average tips. That is a dam_n site more than picking rice.

The longer term possibilities are to move more upmarket (more than Bt200 an hour places) or to get her own place. Concentrate on expats and be prepared to do some home visits (no sex, just sometimes easier to order a take away) and the money can increase quite a bit. Perhaps her own place could be a medium to long term goal.

[ralph444]

my reasoning for finding the same same kind of older haggish massuesses at the run of the mill places is coz hiring babes would upset the applecart. think about it the haggards woulkdnt get any customers. the babe would figgure out quickly she could make more elsewhere and move on. the ow ner would have no workers, which i guess is worse than having workers that get little use.

[Ulysses G.]

I have a friend (thai) who wants to study massage, how much would it cost to go and study massage?

And after the study, is it hard to find a job, or do you think it will be easy to find a job?

And finally, what about income, i know it will probably not get her rich, but i just want to get an idea, what a regular salary would be.

I know a lot of Thai women who do massage and live totally hand to mouth. They have to sit in a massage parlor all day not earning anything until they get lucky enough to get a customer and earn 60 - 80 baht and usually that is only once or twice a day.

Edited May 13, 2008 by Ulysses G.

[jfchandler]

Same here... that's the norm....

Unless... they've got a sponsor/sponsors...

I know quite a few, pleasant but very ordinary-looking Thai massage women in BKK who have farang "BFs" both inside and outside Thailand who are sponsoring them every month, though certainly not all Thai massage ladies are doing that. I know a fair number who make FAR more money from their BF/sponsors than they do from their own massage jobs...

I think the job gives them something to do, a way to socialize, and a kind of insurance policy, if things go south with the sponsors. And, of course, a way to meet potential NEW sponsors (since there's no limit about only having ONE...)

Or, of course, if the massage lady is doing more than "regular" Thai massage... In that case, for the good ones in high-volume/popular shops, they're making more money each month than ME and probably a good share of the people reading TV!!!!

[ralph444]

too put it bluntly those who make money give it up for it! no different than being bargirl! ex. of previous poster. i do think that massueses at president inn have sponsors. using the internet there on numerous occasions i have seen them trying to figure what sponsors e mial messages mean as they r not fluent in engrit.

surely they aint making a living just giving legit massages. not enuff customers!

Edited May 13, 2008 by ralph444

[aehn]

I know nothing about the courses except that if the OP's friend wanted to say work at the Marriott in the Spa then she'd need an education and a degree in the relevant area coupled with practical experience. At a push her salary would be in the mid teens to begin with.

Go down the simplistic route with on the job training or a recognised course then she'd get about Bt80 or Bt90 from the Bt200 an hour which does make the tips very important. However even 3 jobs a day of which 1 is a 2 hour job would give her something over Bt500 with average tips. That is a dam_n site more than picking rice.

The longer term possibilities are to move more upmarket (more than Bt200 an hour places) or to get her own place. Concentrate on expats and be prepared to do some home visits (no sex, just sometimes easier to order a take away) and the money can increase quite a bit. Perhaps her own place could be a medium to long term goal.

if she earns 500 baht a day, that would be good, but to my ears, it sounds kinda high. Getting her own place, yeah, in a long term, but for now, i think it is best just to see if she even likes the job etc...

[aehn]

surely they aint making a living just giving legit massages. not enuff customers!

Yeah, i have been wondering about that, i mean, i see some massage places crowded with eomployees, but hardly any customers...

[Ulysses G.]

The more expensive places pay almost the same as the cheap places - maybe 10 - 20 baht more per massage - but people are less generous with tips because the massage is so expensive and they think the employee is making a big chunk.

[jfchandler]

too put it bluntly those who make money give it up for it! no different than being bargirl! ex. of previous poster.

surely they aint making a living just giving legit massages. not enuff customers!

Well, since I'm the previous poster, I'd beg to differ a bit about the comment above.

The massage ladies with sponsors that I know are NOT doing the same as bar girls, at least, I'd argue it's distinguishably different... Although, I'm sure, there are an infinite number of variations of how different ladies and their men handle these things.

In any number of cases, the sponsor farang is living outside Thailand, but still sending money every month. Then, for the one or two times that sponsor comes to Thailand each year, he knows in advance and expects he's going to spend most or all of that time with his sponsored lady, and she's going to take off work for that time to travel or do other things, as desired. He's going to pay for those activities (hotels, food, outings, etc), but not pay for sex per se...

When, as pointed out above, there's 12 ladies sitting around a shop and lucky to have a couple of customers in any given day, there's plenty of available backup staffing to cover the shop when one or more ladies might be away... It actually works fairly well... And of course, it's up to the individual lady to decide whether she wants to accept sponsors. Many I know either do not have (although they'd like) or do not take sponsors and live just off their work.

I'd argue that kind of sponsor situation is different from a bargirl situation because, in the bar girl's case, whether short-time or long-time, she and the customer are basically exchanging money for sex on an encounter-by-encounter basis... In many cases, that's not the case with regular massage ladies who are sponsored.