Danish Tour Company Asks Phuket For Help

[george]

Danish tour company asks Phuket for help

Phuket Vice Governor Tri Augkaradacha said the province will do as

much as possible under the law to help the Danes get back in business.

PHUKET TOWN: -- A new Danish tour company whose employees have been arrested for working illegally is asking for help from authorities, claiming it pumps vast sums of money into the Phuket economy.

Scanway Tyrkiet Eksperten says it will bring 8,000 Scandinavians on Aurela Airlines charter flights to the island this high season.

Assuming each tourist spends 40,000 baht, that amounts to a 320-million-baht injection into the local economy, the company maintains.

Yet Scanway Tyrkiet Eksperten’s Phuket-based staff are now unable to work and are awaiting court dates for violating Thai labor law.

Immigration Police on December 28 raided the company’s offices at the Royal Crown Hotel in Patong, finding eight Danes working there – none with work permits.

The company had already applied for permits for five workers, though none had been issued at the time of the raid.

The problem is that according to Thai law, a company must have registered capital of two million baht for each work permit application. Scanway Tyrkiet Eksperte has registered capital of four million baht.

Tan Chee Kiong, vice president of the Thai Hotels Association (Southern Chapter), on Tuesday morning went to Phuket Vice Governor Tri Augkaradacha to plead the company’s case.

Vice Governor Tri was sympathetic to the company’s plight, but insisted no special favors could be done.

“The company needs two million baht registered capital for every alien worker. It has four million already, so it will have to register another six million if it wants five workers,” he said.

“For those people who’ve been arrested we will co-ordinate with Immigration and the court to help them,” he said. “But they will have to pay fines, the amounts of which will be up to the court.”

“So far we’ve never had a problem with work permits since charter flights started coming to Phuket,” he said.

“This is the first time it’s happened. But we don’t want to create problems for tourism, so we’ll make things as convenient for them as we can,” he said.

-- Phuket Gazette 2010-01-14

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[TAWP]

No help.

Why should they get special favour and we other suffer?

The only RIGHT thing to do is to ease the demands on ALL companies.

[JimmyTheMook]

Time to raid every overseas Thai restaurant and arrest the students part timing as waiters and waitresses

[Benjie]

The numbers don't sound very likely, if they are such a successful company why haven't they done things properly in terms of startup capital and work permits.

[khundon]

Time to raid every overseas Thai restaurant and arrest the students part timing as waiters and waitresses

Immigration did our town a few weeks ago, caught several Thais, Malays and Chinese.

[Boater]

The company had already applied for permits for five workers, though none had been issued at the time of the raid.

“The company needs two million baht registered capital for every alien worker. It has four million already, so it will have to register another six million if it wants five workers,” he said.

so how had they already applied for 5 work permits on 4 mill capital ????

again, there is something not right here, esp as it made main news?, as there are arrests everyday for ferang working with no work permits....

[MaiChai]

The rules are too strict for foreigners working in Thailand. The Thais think they are doing the right thing protecting Thais jobs but the reality is this protectionism doesn't work. Time for Thailand to modernise or loose business to competitors.

[surangw]

I wonder how all those time share turds slide by.

[Phil Conners]

This is actually a Turkish owned and run company in Denmark.

[RKASA]

These rules cost more jobs then they protect, but if you want to play you got to pay or it can cost you much more in the long run. Like the rules or not, it's a bad business choice to try and slip by. Penny wise and pound foolish.

I am glad I have no desire or need to work here.

[lordsux]

This is actually a Turkish owned and run company in Denmark.

Incorrect.

Scanway/Tyrkiet Eskperten is a Turkish owned Danish ApS (LLC) company run by Danes in Denmark.

Edited January 14, 2010 by lordsux

[Phil Conners]

This is actually a Turkish owned and run company in Denmark.

Incorrect.

Tyrkiet Eskperten is a Danish ApS (LLC) company run by Danes in Denmark.

You obviously don't know what you talk about (or consider turkish people who happen to have acquired a danish passport to be danish). I've been in their offices in Copenhagen and they are all Turks.

[jitenshaman]

that's 8000 tuk tuk ripoffs that might be lost!

[lordsux]

Funny, I worked in the same building as their offices, I have also been to many their office parties and I don't recall ever seeing a Turkish national employed there. This was back in the late 90's not long after they established themselves so things may have changed since then, and probably have considering the 2/3nd generation of Turkish immigrants must be very active in the Danish workforce now.

dam_n I'm getting old

Edited January 14, 2010 by lordsux

[Colabamumbai]

The company had already applied for permits for five workers, though none had been issued at the time of the raid.

"The company needs two million baht registered capital for every alien worker. It has four million already, so it will have to register another six million if it wants five workers," he said.

so how had they already applied for 5 work permits on 4 mill capital ????

again, there is something not right here, esp as it made main news?, as there are arrests everyday for ferang working with no work permits....

The work permit office probable called immigration while the permits were being applied for.

[spacemand]

From the press the company have gotten in Denmark over the last 5+ years I am not surprised by this.

The offer very cheap trips but you really get what you pay for with these guys! and they have a bad rep.

[geriatrickid]

I don't care. The more Dansk the better we all are.

Aside from being pleasing to the eye, I have found the Danes to be wonderful visitors, and at least in Phuket, almost always polite and well behaved. So forgive my double standard when I say, I hope the problem is settled and that it does not impact the much welcomed Danish presence.

And before any smart asses rip a piece off of me, the Danish women that walk the beaches make even a cloudy day burst with sunshine. I am seduced by their beguiling beauty.

[nam-thip]

Having had a business in Thailand i've come to the conclusion that Thai laws are racist.

Racism in Thailand is rife.

[jonclark]

Having had a business in Thailand i've come to the conclusion that Thai laws are racist.

Racism in Thailand is rife.

Hard to disagree with that sentiment. But that is what you get when the military is so involved in politics. The consistant playing of the 'nationalistic card', enshrined in law until people believe it is a just and fair.

As for the Danish company, grease the palms of those that count.

[LuckyLew]

Thy were caught using illegal employees

Now they are asking the Gov't for help

Talk about huge brass nards

[stevenl]

They are being treated favourably already, if those arrested for working illegally are only fined and allowed to stay in the country.

Sorry, but get your stuff in order before you open a business here, that's the same for everybody.

Also, their numbers reasoning is flawed, since the main reasoning behind it i: if we don't get those tourists here, nobody else will. A part of those tourists will come here with another operator if this one can't offer it.

Edited January 15, 2010 by stevenl

[stiggy]

If a company that is bringing in that volume of tourists hasnt got its affairs in order for its staff, it gives little hope to the qulaity of package and support for its paying customers.

Why should a company be offered help that is simply cutting corners.

If they are as big as they say why only 4 million paid up capital ? why operate from a hotel ?

I have dealt with several large tourist based companys they ALL get their affairs in order BEFORE bringing over paying customers.

Something dosent add up, they have been caught out and now are simply blagging it.

[Credo]

It would seem that they are employing a lot of Danes. How many Thais are they employing? It's hard to get a business going in Thailand, but it seems they have violated the law in a rather significant manner.

[moetownblues]

Time to raid every overseas Thai restaurant and arrest the students part timing as waiters and waitresses

I don't think thais would like that could be considered racist. most countries have laws to prevent such a thing

[moetownblues]

I don't care. The more Dansk the better we all are.

Aside from being pleasing to the eye, I have found the Danes to be wonderful visitors, and at least in Phuket, almost always polite and well behaved. So forgive my double standard when I say, I hope the problem is settled and that it does not impact the much welcomed Danish presence.

And before any smart asses rip a piece off of me, the Danish women that walk the beaches make even a cloudy day burst with sunshine. I am seduced by their beguiling beauty.

well why aren't you living in Denmark?

[samran]

I don't care. The more Dansk the better we all are.

Aside from being pleasing to the eye, I have found the Danes to be wonderful visitors, and at least in Phuket, almost always polite and well behaved. So forgive my double standard when I say, I hope the problem is settled and that it does not impact the much welcomed Danish presence.

And before any smart asses rip a piece off of me, the Danish women that walk the beaches make even a cloudy day burst with sunshine. I am seduced by their beguiling beauty.

Got to agree that the Danish females are not too hard on the eye.

[infernalman7]

Laws are laws. This company regardless of how much money they have injected to the economy should also be under the same law as other 1000+ companies. Again, if they really need a special consideration by the govt, all they need to do is to contact BOI.

[moe666]

If you are a farang co. you donot have to abide by the laws of the country you do business in. And if you are a farang poster on Thaivisa it is ok to break the laws of your host country because the country is corrupt, some of the poster on thaivisa never cease to amaze me.

[geriatrickid]

I don't care. The more Dansk the better we all are.

Aside from being pleasing to the eye, I have found the Danes to be wonderful visitors, and at least in Phuket, almost always polite and well behaved. So forgive my double standard when I say, I hope the problem is settled and that it does not impact the much welcomed Danish presence.

And before any smart asses rip a piece off of me, the Danish women that walk the beaches make even a cloudy day burst with sunshine. I am seduced by their beguiling beauty.

well why aren't you living in Denmark?

Well, some of the reasons are;

- Cost of living (I can get nice socks at Ocean Plaza 3 @120baht. Try and do that in Denmark.)

- Beer is much cheaper in Thailand.

- Danish women do not reveal their luscious sensual bodies in Denmark quite the same way as they do on Karon beach. Perhaps the -10C weather has something to do with that.

[Birdman]

It would seem that they are employing a lot of Danes. How many Thais are they employing? It's hard to get a business going in Thailand, but it seems they have violated the law in a rather significant manner.

It could be, that they are reps in the hotels and on sightseeing trips requested by most tourists in their own language. How many Thais can speak fluent Danish and are willing to do that job?

There are tour reps of "exotic" countries here to help their guests.