Stalemate In Wage Panel Over Bt300 Daily Wage: Thailand

[webfact]

Stalemate in wage panel over Bt300 daily wage

THANONGSAK MUENNOO

THE NATION

The Central Wage Tripartite Committee yesterday failed to reach a decision as to when the flat Bt300 minimum daily wage should go into effect after employees' representatives refused to accept employers' demand for a four-year delay.

The panel will discuss the issue again on October 17.

After the four-hour meeting, Labour Ministry permanent secretary Somkiat Chayasriwong said employers wanted to wait for four years before increasing the daily wage rate to Bt300 and also wanted concrete measures and guarantees from the government.

The government has been under pressure to deliver on its campaign promise, with the workforce demanding that the Bt300 rate be implemented immediately in Bangkok and its vicinity, by January 1 in other large provinces and the rest of the country in the next two years.

Somkiat said he hoped the October 17 meeting would be final, though he did not want to force the result through voting, because "a voting-enabled win would not be accepted by all parties concerned".

Atthayuth Leeyawanich, a panel member representing employers, said that under the Labour Protection Act wages could not be adjusted freely, but had to depend on inflation, cost of living and production cost.

"The 40-per-cent average increase [based on the flat Bt300 rate] does not go according to law," he said, adding that he doubted if the Bt300 would be constitutional.

"Although the Act does not stipulate liabilities for violation, I wonder if the panel's decision would go against the Constitution," he said.

Labour leader Wilaiwan sae-Tia had earlier submitted an open letter to the ministry saying the Bt300 wage should be implemented by January 1 or the government would face legal action for failing to keep its election promise.

She added that some 3,000 labourers and members of the Thai Labour Solidarity Committee (TLSC) would gather outside Government House to submit this request to Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra, she added.

Labour Minister Pol General Phadermchai Sasomsap, who met Wilaiwan and fellow workers, said the flat Bt300 rate would most probably not be implemented by January 1 as the process of many related incentives, including corporate tax reduction, had yet to be completed.

-- The Nation 2011-10-06

[Buchholz]

Yet another election promise that won't be kept.

[wired]

How much is the minimum daily wage today in Thailand?

[whybother]

How much is the minimum daily wage today in Thailand?

Between about 156 159 baht and 221 baht (Phuket) depending on the province. Bangkok is 206 215 baht.

http://www.business-in-asia.com/thailand/minimum_wage2011.html

(or something like that)

Edited October 6, 2011 by whybother

[whatsupdoc]

How much is the minimum daily wage today in Thailand?

Varies per province; from 159 Baht in Phayao to 215 Baht in Phuket.

[Krungbin]

How much is the minimum daily wage today in Thailand?

Between about 156 159 baht and 221 baht (Phuket) depending on the province. Bangkok is 206 215 baht.

http://www.business-...m_wage2011.html

(or something like that)

Would you happen to know how many hours are being worked for this daily "salary"?

And how many days are being "worked" a month? Thanks

[whybother]

How much is the minimum daily wage today in Thailand?

Between about 156 159 baht and 221 baht (Phuket) depending on the province. Bangkok is 206 215 baht.

http://www.business-...m_wage2011.html

(or something like that)

Would you happen to know how many hours are being worked for this daily "salary"?

And how many days are being "worked" a month? Thanks

From my understanding, a "standard" day is 9 hours, and often 6 days a week. Obviously there are plenty of examples of 7days and more than 9 hours.

[hkt83100]

Would you happen to know how many hours are being worked for this daily "salary"?

9 hours a day, day off -> no money.

[Bakseedaa]

How much is the minimum daily wage today in Thailand?

Between about 156 159 baht and 221 baht (Phuket) depending on the province. Bangkok is 206 215 baht.

http://www.business-...m_wage2011.html

(or something like that)

Would you happen to know how many hours are being worked for this daily "salary"?

And how many days are being "worked" a month? Thanks

Obviously , Not enough......

[ginjag]

Yet another election promise that won't be kept.

Amazing fair miracle election--full of promise-very very short on delivery- lost face the government?? no I think they must have lost some brain.

[Krungbin]

whybother and hkt83100 : many thanks for this precision!

[bushwacker]

<"Would you happen to know how many hours are being worked for this daily "salary"?

And how many days are being "worked" a month? Thanks>"

With retail, they work 25 minutes to 1 hour a day and they are at the job site for 9 hours. They are typically at the job 6 days a week. Of course construction and mechanics are a different story.

[Gers1873]

How much are panel members receiving per day to sit and procrastinate?? 300 baht or perhaps slightly more

[alexakap]

some 3,000 labourers and members of the Thai Labour Solidarity Committee (TLSC) would gather outside Government House to submit this request to Prime Minister

Here we start again.

PS: someone wake me up when they'll spit blood to the Govt House doors...

[jamstock]

Governments failing to deliver on election promises? That only happens in Thailand....

[huck]

Seems to me that the Red Shirts were defeated by there own party only several monthes after wining the elections.

whybother and hkt83100 : many thanks for this precision!

[Buchholz]

some 3,000 labourers and members of the Thai Labour Solidarity Committee (TLSC) would gather outside Government House to submit this request to Prime Minister

Here we start again.

PS: someone wake me up when they'll spit blood to the Govt House doors...

Thai Labour Solidarity Committee (TLSC) during happier times (a scant 2 months ago) with the Pheu Thai Party... represented by Boat Propellers To Control A River Science Minister and former Chiang Mai Night Safari Exotic Animal Buffet Organizer, Plodprasop (seated, far left)

The Thai Labour Solidarity Committee hosts a conference to tell the media they support Pheu Thai Party's policy to raise the minimum daily wage to Bt300 nationwide.

The Nation : 2011-07-19

http://www.nationmultimedia.com/specials/nationphoto/show.php?pid=11199

Edited October 6, 2011 by Buchholz

[OzMick]

"Atthayuth Leeyawanich, a panel member representing employers, said that under the Labour Protection Act wages could not be adjusted freely, but had to depend on inflation, cost of living and production cost..............................adding that he doubted if the Bt300 would be constitutional."

The incompetence of PTPs policy makers seems to know no bounds. I'd say they couldn't organize a piss-up in a brewery, except all evidence seems to indicate that they did, and thought up their policies at the same time.

Should be able to overcome this slight hitch when they change the constitution to absolve Thaksin of all crimes. Given a choice between justice and greed, 48% of Thai voters are a known quantity.

[Arkady]

There is a problem with poverty in Thailand but trying to raise the minimum wage artificially above market rates is not the solution and won't work, particularly when they are 4 million foreign labourers in the country who already work illegally for less than the current minimum wage and authorities are willing to turn a blind eye to than to support business owners.

[TAWP]

After the four-hour meeting, Labour Ministry permanent secretary Somkiat Chayasriwong said employers wanted to wait for four years before increasing the daily wage rate to Bt300 and also wanted concrete measures and guarantees from the government.

Which is basically what the normal slow minimum wage-raise would end up anyway...

The problem is that minimum wage isn't a platform to guarantee a decent salary to anyone - it is a bar for employers to aim at, downwards, and pre-calculate how much a big stable of employees will cost, without having to worry about the concept of individual salary setting due to performance...

The minimum wage has a tendency to make all salaries that in an open market place would have been higher too gyrate downwards to the minimum wage level, becoming a focus-point, like a candle light to a moth.

And general employers never have to worry about salary-competition - in most cases everyone else will be paying the same.

(The very opposite how it works for those with many times higher salaries, where the open market place decides your salary.)

[Skywalker69]

Yet another election promise that won't be kept.

Amazing fair miracle election--full of promise-very very short on delivery- lost face the government?? no I think they must have lost some brain.

The PTP was ready to make promises they know they woulden´t keep. They had to win the election and then make the steps needed to bring back Khun T.

[Skywalker69]

Yet another election promise that won't be kept.

Amazing fair miracle election--full of promise-very very short on delivery- lost face the government?? no I think they must have lost some brain.

It´s impossible to loose someting that one dosen´t have.

[hellodolly]

Governments failing to deliver on election promises? That only happens in Thailand....

It happens all the time world wide.

Thailand is one of the few countries where the people believe they will deliver on them.

[Bpuumike]

The photo accompanying the article is very apt for "people wanting concrete measures",

I often wonder if the BIB are on the minimum wage - would go some way to explaining their M.O.

[jamstock]

Governments failing to deliver on election promises? That only happens in Thailand....

It happens all the time world wide.

Thailand is one of the few countries where the people believe they will deliver on them.

Yes, I was joking. Totally agree with you.

[scorecard]

There is a problem with poverty in Thailand but trying to raise the minimum wage artificially above market rates is not the solution and won't work, particularly when they are 4 million foreign labourers in the country who already work illegally for less than the current minimum wage and authorities are willing to turn a blind eye to than to support business owners.

And even more to the point, the pt and the reds have no policy whatever to change the whole situation to gain a scenario whereby a much larger percentage of the Thai population have a decent quality of life through their own productivity.

[scorecard]

Seems to me that the Red Shirts were defeated by there own party only several monthes after wining the elections.

whybother and hkt83100 : many thanks for this precision!

But I wonder if thaksin is seeing that getting amnesty etc., is not making the progress that he wanted and may be it won't happen at all, so he's now pushing plan B to keep his cause alive / keep his red shirt army alive and kicking by developing red villages where dissent is basically not allowed and no doubt there are / will be 'democracy' schools (read lots of re-runs of hate messages, replays of doctored tapes etc.