Immigration Burmese

[hellodolly]

Went in today for my 90 day in at 11:30 OUT AT 12"00.

But I could not believe the amount of people there not only was the building crowded but they were in the parking lot out a long the road and even a crowd across the street.

Was wondering what the deal is.

There was far to many to handle in a day with twice the staff and the day was half over.

Just curious.

[WinnieTheKhwai]

As it happens I was there myself today, and yes, the place was crawling with Burmese folks. They seemed to handle those in a different queue/building from everyone else though. However if you needed an extra photocopy from the little shop there then you'd better think again.

(Picture not from today, but a very similar scene)

Edited December 3, 2012 by WinnieTheKhwai

[uptheos]

Thai's just hate paying 300 Baht minimum wage and there's big organisations that have 'a deal' to employ Burmese workers at far less. Don't be fooled into thinking Burmese workers have the same rights as Thai's, they might get paid the same by some people, but in general they are still very much discriminated against and will work for 100 Baht.......they REALLY need the money to send home and at home there is no work. They have little choice and the Thai employers know it!

Edited December 3, 2012 by uptheos

[ThaiPauly]

I know that Burmese maids that work around where I live (Mae Hia) are on 300 a day, coz maids are so scarce they can virtually name their price.

Also the Burmese guys that do gardening around here will charge 500 baht to cut a lawn in 2 hours, that's good money, no Thai's are offering a service like it.

We got them to lay a bit of turf and plant a few trees and two of them charged 1000 baht for half a days work which included mowing 2 lawns. I'm happy to pay because they do a good job and in my eyes it's still cheap.

So some Burmese are doing OK,

[bluweyze]

Thai's just hate paying 300 Baht minimum wage and there's big organisations that have 'a deal' to employ Burmese workers at far less. Don't be fooled into thinking Burmese workers have the same rights as Thai's, they might get paid the same by some people, but in general they are still very much discriminated against and will work for 100 Baht.......they REALLY need the money to send home and at home there is no work. They have little choice and the Thai employers know it!

The Burmese workers who are at immigration are legal with a work permit; they are therefore entitled to the minimum wage the same as a Thai worker. The Burmese workers are excellent, especially for any work that is outside and with a labour element, they are therefore in high demand. I don't know where you get your facts from, I doubt there is any legal Burmese worker that will work for 100 Baht.

[elektrified]

I know that Burmese maids that work around where I live (Mae Hia) are on 300 a day, coz maids are so scarce they can virtually name their price.

Also the Burmese guys that do gardening around here will charge 500 baht to cut a lawn in 2 hours, that's good money, no Thai's are offering a service like it.

We got them to lay a bit of turf and plant a few trees and two of them charged 1000 baht for half a days work which included mowing 2 lawns. I'm happy to pay because they do a good job and in my eyes it's still cheap.

So some Burmese are doing OK,

Agree with you 100%. It is not possible in my area to find Burmese housekeepers for under 300 THB per day. They are very much in demand because they do a good job and work hard.

I've posted before about our gardener and some members poo pooed me. He is a Burmese guy and makes 40,000 THB per month. He takes care of almost every garden in the entire moobaan with the help of his wife and a cousin. I've only seen one other competitor around the moobaan and he only he moves real slow. Our guy can do the same job in 2 - 2 1/2 hours that some Thai gardeners do in 6 hours. He also knows how to properly prepare soil for planting, knows which plants need sun or not, etc. He has all the proper tools and does a great job!

[elektrified]

Thai's just hate paying 300 Baht minimum wage and there's big organisations that have 'a deal' to employ Burmese workers at far less. Don't be fooled into thinking Burmese workers have the same rights as Thai's, they might get paid the same by some people, but in general they are still very much discriminated against and will work for 100 Baht.......they REALLY need the money to send home and at home there is no work. They have little choice and the Thai employers know it!

The Burmese workers who are at immigration are legal with a work permit; they are therefore entitled to the minimum wage the same as a Thai worker. The Burmese workers are excellent, especially for any work that is outside and with a labour element, they are therefore in high demand. I don't know where you get your facts from, I doubt there is any legal Burmese worker that will work for 100 Baht.

Most of the guys out by JJ Market ask for more than 300/day - and get it.

[masuk]

I had a Burmese man and his wife come to my house; the lawns, hedge, etc had not been cut for a month or two, as I'd been away.

I thought the asking price of 500baht was a bit much, but when I saw how hard they worked and what they did in a few hours, it was well worth it.

Sadly, they've returned to Burma. Anyone know of another couple who'd do some gardening 5km past Maejo Uni?

[uptheos]

I know that Burmese maids that work around where I live (Mae Hia) are on 300 a day, coz maids are so scarce they can virtually name their price.

Also the Burmese guys that do gardening around here will charge 500 baht to cut a lawn in 2 hours, that's good money, no Thai's are offering a service like it.

We got them to lay a bit of turf and plant a few trees and two of them charged 1000 baht for half a days work which included mowing 2 lawns. I'm happy to pay because they do a good job and in my eyes it's still cheap.

So some Burmese are doing OK,

Yes, you're private so it wasn't aimed in your direction.

[uptheos]

Thai's just hate paying 300 Baht minimum wage and there's big organisations that have 'a deal' to employ Burmese workers at far less. Don't be fooled into thinking Burmese workers have the same rights as Thai's, they might get paid the same by some people, but in general they are still very much discriminated against and will work for 100 Baht.......they REALLY need the money to send home and at home there is no work. They have little choice and the Thai employers know it!

The Burmese workers who are at immigration are legal with a work permit; they are therefore entitled to the minimum wage the same as a Thai worker. The Burmese workers are excellent, especially for any work that is outside and with a labour element, they are therefore in high demand. I don't know where you get your facts from, I doubt there is any legal Burmese worker that will work for 100 Baht.

Yes, I know Burmese are excellent I hire a few and pay them accordingly. And yeah yeah the others are legal and have work permits blah blah, but they still get shafted and say nothing, their position is too precarious.

It also begs a question, why aren't the Thai's working?

Edited December 4, 2012 by uptheos

[uptheos]

Agree with you 100%. It is not possible in my area to find Burmese housekeepers for under 300 THB per day. They are very much in demand because they do a good job and work hard.

Mine comes once a week and I give her 500 Baht. She's so good and works non stop from 9-4, She only fitted us in because she is a friend of the missus, she actually asked for 300 Baht, but I don't want to lose her.

[Hillside4Phil]

yesterday was a nightmare, with the farang's trying to push because they could not get a ticket in the afternoon it was a test of patience

[hellodolly]

Interesting posts.

I still know nothing about why they are all there.

It was my understanding that to get a work permit they have to be sponsored by a company or some one.

All those people and I saw very little action for them.

As my original post said they were all over the place and even a crowd on both sides of the road. This was at 12:00.

What are they expecting with a crowd that big at noon. Is there some sort of super fast service in the building on the left?

I agree the Burmese are harder workers and more dependable than many Thais.

That is not a blanket statement against all Thais. There are some who are very dependable and work hard.

[bluweyze]

Interesting posts.

I still know nothing about why they are all there.

It was my understanding that to get a work permit they have to be sponsored by a company or some one.

All those people and I saw very little action for them.

As my original post said they were all over the place and even a crowd on both sides of the road. This was at 12:00.

What are they expecting with a crowd that big at noon. Is there some sort of super fast service in the building on the left?

I agree the Burmese are harder workers and more dependable than many Thais.

That is not a blanket statement against all Thais. There are some who are very dependable and work hard.

Over the last 2 years most of the legal Burmese have been given a Burmese passport and a 5 year visa which allows them to work. The work permit is no longer tied to an employer but each new employer has to register them. This gives them a lot more rights than formerly when they could not travel out of their province, legally ride a motorbike and it cost them money to change employers. They had to pay quite an amount (in their terms) to get this passport and visa and they still have to have a very expensive medical every year ( which I would applaud if I thought the quality of the medical matched the price). The passport change brought them into the 90 day report scenario which often takes from 7am until mid afternoon for most of my staff. I think it is the opposite of 'fast-tracked'. Because most cannot write in Thai they have to pay for the forms to be completed unless they have a helpful employer or friend. Why there were so many the day you went could just be co-incidence or something that I have no idea about. I am an employer of Burmese, and a great fan of them as employees. Just to make it clear I have always matched their terms and conditions to other employees, but fortunately now it is the law, but as this is Thailand many Thai employers don't even match the law for Thai employees and as many Thais look down on Burmese I doubt that they look after them as a choice, but as Burmese are in high demand and they now have the ability to easily change jobs, maltreatment is likely to diminish.