Update:

Bank declares extra New Year holiday

BANGKOK: -- The Bank of Thailand declared January 2 a business holiday, creating a five-day New Year break.

"Normally the Bank of Thailand will not set more than four consecutive holidays, but because of repercussions from overseas economic sluggishness the Bank expects light transactions at the end of this year," it said in a statement.

"To fix Friday January 2 as a bank holiday will not significantly affect the country's productivity and it will boost the tourism sector," it added.

-- Bangkok Post 2008-12-11

='Gertrude' post='2397602' date='2008-12-11 01:23:01']Thailand must have one of the greatest number of public holidays in the world

... and probably one of the highest in the world working hours, for many it's 12 and 16h shifts 7 days a week - comparing to 36-40h a week in the west and than 6-8 weeks payed holidays

[/quote

Even with(?) all of the hours you mention being AT work BY tHAIS , the average actual production is way down by comparison , most Westerners do a days work , whatever i have seen thais engaged in , at least half are sitting down or just watching the world go by . Do what many Western companies have done , pay them according to what they produce , Thais work to this schedule picking worms in Canada , you would be surprised how much money they send home to Thailand .

Feel free to Google or Wick-it .

Do what many Western companies have done , pay them according to what they produce

production in thailand might be low bacause of poor investment, infrastructure and organisation of work and not necesserily because workers are sitting down instead of working. Thai are grossly underpayed comparing to their western counterparts and the income gap between the employees and employers are huge. On top of it - there is no social security and very little employement rights and the health service still has to be payed for.

I've never quite gotten the correlation that folks use between being unproductive and low pay. Somehow if you pay more, people will suddenly get productive--I don't think so. If you pay more, you might be able to pick and chose to get more productive people, but high wages do not necessarily mean high productivity.

This isn't an excuse for not paying poorly or for keeping people in poverty. It's simply an observation.

I've never quite gotten the correlation that folks use between being unproductive and low pay. Somehow if you pay more, people will suddenly get productive--I don't think so. If you pay more, you might be able to pick and chose to get more productive people, but high wages do not necessarily mean high productivity.

This isn't an excuse for not paying poorly or for keeping people in poverty. It's simply an observation.

You make a very good point Scott, a worker who thinks he is underpayed , despite knowing his work schedule on employment , will slow down to the level he 'Thinks' he is being payed for . This in turn slows down some of the group because they feel they are doing some of the share of his workload , this type of worker would find it difficult to come up to par even if his pay were doubled

Production in not consumate with monetary return , but more the personal attitude of the worker , Thais will often also fail to turn up for work with no prior warning because they went to work with a friend whom they could chat with , the job is not the important factor . So , because they spend multiple hours AT work does not mean they are WORKING , hence the need to spend 12/16 hours on the job to get 8 hours of work completed . Laziness ( A lack of work ethic) is part of Thai culture , live with it .

without announcing it many would take Friday 2.01 off the work - but really if the government wanted to give an extra day they should do it much earlier, not just 3 weeks in advance, when all cheap arifare and cheap accommodation is gone to the foreign tourists

what about double pricing on hotels with the lower prices for Thais? With the drop in tourists & cancellations, there are plenty of rooms still available. Besides, most westerners don't use the hotels many budget conscious Thais stay at.

generally the soonest you book the cheaper room rates and you have a choice of different rooms at different prices, depending on your budget.

now all the best options are sold out to the foreign tourists, with rooms of the worst value (without windows or without nice views, far from the swimming pool etc) remaining.

as to lower charges to thai - on a related thread http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/tier-pricing...ls-t227642.html

was reported, that hotels charge up to 200% more for thai than for foreigners

I see they have got their priorities in order.

The country is falling apart, civil war imminent, tourist numbers decimated, and they declare a public holiday.

Geez - you mean this civil war/national collapse stuff is STILL going around!? You forgot to mention the guillotine being set up at a hidden location in Bangkok for the coming "Farang Terror", the pending invasion of the dreaded Cambodian army from the east, not to mention the death squads in secret training camps up north.

Well, the world would certainly be a more boring place without the drama queens...

I know, I know. There are "newspaper articles" by "experts".

Update:

"To fix Friday January 2 as a bank holiday will not significantly affect the country's productivity and it will boost the tourism sector," it added.

-- Bangkok Post 2008-12-11

Well BOT and banks here never had the productivity the west has to begin with

Geez - you mean this civil war/national collapse stuff is STILL going around!? You forgot to mention the guillotine being set up at a hidden location in Bangkok for the coming "Farang Terror", the pending invasion of the dreaded Cambodian army from the east, not to mention the death squads in secret training camps up north.

Well, the world would certainly be a more boring place without the drama queens...

I know, I know. There are "newspaper articles" by "experts".

My deepest apologies for disturbing your allusion that everything is just fine and dandy in LOS. Maybe you live in a parallel universe?

BTW, what I did omit to mention, is that I have heard through the grapevine that the Burmese Junta have advanced plans to re-take Ayudhaya on January 2nd, when the entire population of Thailand, including the armed forces, are in a state of drunken oblivion.

Good day to be out of town.

DANG! I love a good rumor...

This is a caretaker cabinet, they had to do SOMETHING,

about all they can do is be remembered for

an extra day's holiday in 2008.

Edited December 13, 200817 yr by animatic

Is it a public or a government day off?

Is it a public or a government day off?

Public, bank, govt day off.

Thailand must have one of the greatest number of public holidays in the world

... and probably one of the highest in the world working hours, for many it's 12 and 16h shifts 7 days a week - comparing to 36-40h a week in the west and than 6-8 weeks payed holidays

Pretty sure the French hold that record hands down globally.

good for them - and they don't have to work from the yang age to help family fend for food and carry on working untill they unable to move (as still many thai do)

good for them - and they don't have to work from the yang age to help family fend for food and carry on working untill they unable to move (as still many thai do)

My condolences to these poor people , but it just happens to go with the territory where they live , i am from a poor family and needed to get a job at an early age to buy myself a bicycle . I won a scholar ship to a school that was 3 miles from where i lived and my parents could not afford my bus-fare , i walked . Many of us have had our cross to bear in this life .

The banks will be closed for five consequetive days. That's a first in my lifetime.

When was the 31st December ever a holiday? Surely the New Year's holiday was always the 1st January?. Businesses used to have to close their books on 31st, (obviously a task now undertaken by computerisation...but I remember...blah, blah)

More to the point , I thought Dec 31st to be a Western celebration , do the Thai now not celibrate thier own new year , if all things Western are a bad influence on Thai society , why then are they celebrating with an extended holiday now ? Oh , I forgot , anything for a few more days off to practise Sanuk , just laze around and have fun with friends , better than working and trying to fit in the work between social camaraderi .Ah well This Is Thailand , back to work guys , you only get the 1st off as I recall .

Update:

Bank declares extra New Year holiday

BANGKOK: -- The Bank of Thailand declared January 2 a business holiday, creating a five-day New Year break.

-- Bangkok Post 2008-12-11

That makes it a five day weekend. Is that correct?

I pity the visarunners during this New Year.

Turn in passport Dec 30 and get it back Jan 5.