Yingluck Urges Thai Workers To Upgrade Skills

[webfact]

PM urges workers to upgrade skills
Thammaraj Kijchalong
The Nation



Yingluck says government backs labour group's list of demands

BANGKOK: -- Marking Labour Day yesterday, Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra thanked workers for their contributions to Thailand's economy but emphasised the need for labourers to improve their skills.

"Thank you for strengthening the country's economy and quality of services as well as products," she said as she presided over the official Labour Day celebration.

She emphasised, however, that workers needed to better their skills.

"Greater productivity and higher income for their workplaces means immunity against lay-offs," Yingluck said. "Improvement of skills is a must also as the Asean Economic Community is about to begin."

On her government's plan for workers, Yingluck vowed to expand breastfeeding corners and nurseries at workplaces for a better quality of life for working mothers.

A higher number of breastfeeding corners and centres for unregistered workers were among demands made by the National Congress of Thai Labour (NCTL).

Yingluck has accepted all the demands, saying her government would make and integrate efforts to tend to the needs of both registered and unregistered workers.

NCTL president Chinnachote Saengsang said other demands included the establishment of a fund to ensure workers would definitely get compensation in the event of sudden business shutdowns.

"The last payment for workers from employers should also be exempt from tax," he said.

Other demands included the scrapping of a policy to privatise state enterprises, better benefits from the social security scheme, the legal protection of people working at home, and paid paternity leave.

Labour Minister Phadermchai Sasomsap said the government had already responded to some of the demands.

"We have released an announcement asking entrepreneurs for cooperation in granting paternity leave," he said.

The Labour Ministry is also consulting relevant parties as to whether some laws need to be adjusted to enforce paternity leave, he said.



REVIEWING ILO CONVENTIONS

Regarding the call for the government to ratify the International Labour Organisation's Conventions No 87 and 98, Phadermchai said the Council of State was reviewing the relevant documents.

"After the review process is completed, we will forward them to the Cabinet and then to the Parliament," he explained.

The ratification of these two conventions, according to the NCTL, would allow workers to assemble and negotiate.

Phadermchai shrugged off a recent survey that suggested workers had bigger debts and their living conditions had not improved, despite the government's increase of the daily minimum wage to Bt300.

"The daily minimum wage has increased by about 40 per cent on average. Although commodity prices have increased, they did not jump that much," he said. "I don't think workers' debts grew because of the hike in product prices."

Chayanut Sakkanjanakul, an employee at a factory in Samut Prakan, said commodity prices had risen since the new minimum wage took effect.

"I hope the government will not stick with its original plan to peg the daily minimum wage at Bt300 for two more years.

"If the wage doesn't really increase in the next two years, the government must control product prices," he said.


-- The Nation 2013-05-02

[pedro01]

How exactly do workers upgrade their own skills?

Surely there either needs to be government training or incentives for businesses to provide it.

As for the breast feeding corners - that does sort of imply mothers taking infants to work with them. Nurseries at work might work for larger companies IF an incentive is provided but kids should really not be going to work IMO.

[chooka]

She is right on this one, the workplace is constantly changing/evolving and if people don't keep up they will be out of work. I don't think there is a single job in Australia that you can get unless you have completed some form of training/courses.

[chooka]

How exactly do workers upgrade their own skills?

Surely there either needs to be government training or incentives for businesses to provide it.

As for the breast feeding corners - that does sort of imply mothers taking infants to work with them. Nurseries at work might work for larger companies IF an incentive is provided but kids should really not be going to work IMO.

The government will have to get behind it. Setting up TAFE (Tech & Further Education) facilities like we have in Australia where people can do short courses to hone thier skills. The costs are tax deductable and subsidised by the government. It not only improves the skills of workers but the ecomony as a whole.

[Thai at Heart]

Next she will tell them not to rely on nepotism to get a job.

[Moruya]

Marvelous - I can just imagine my boss coming in with that statement

In reality it's Arbeit Macht Frei

[OzMick]

That's how minimum wage workers get a pay raise in the real world.

[Nickymaster]

Yingluck urges Thai workers to upgrade their skills.

What are you doing to help them Yingluck? It starts with proper education. And that is more than handing out a tablet.

Spend, steal and manipulate. PT in a nutshell.

[Rorri]

How exactly do workers upgrade their own skills?

Surely there either needs to be government training or incentives for businesses to provide it.

As for the breast feeding corners - that does sort of imply mothers taking infants to work with them. Nurseries at work might work for larger companies IF an incentive is provided but kids should really not be going to work IMO.

The problem I see, with workers "upgrading their "skills", is who in this country is capable of teaching them, who has these "higher" skills to pass on, unless horror of horrors, they import higher skilled people as trainers.

[MikeENZ]

Skill number one could be "not falling asleep at work"

[hellodolly]

Yingluck said

"Yingluck has accepted all the demands"

Why didn't some one demand she end corruption and get serious about giving a real education in all the schools?

[bigbamboo]

Yingluck is right here. Thais need to improve their skills in order to improve their lot as it appears PT can no longer make them rich as promised.

[Sydebolle]

Yingluck did it again.

After having screwed the SME (like me) by an increase in labour costs of 28% across the board within one year without having increased:
a) efficiency of existing force
reduced number of employees
c) replaced those working-off-the-job-without-notification with better qualified staff as latter is simply not available

I've decided to call it a day and move my business while I write these lines.

All Non-Thais legally working here know the degrading Canossa-path, applying the "underling" approach to these high-nosed, looking-down-on-farang government officials by asking to legally work and pay taxes here. Repetitive procedure; my birth certificate, education certificates etc. etc. being photocopied, translated into Thai and signed by me on a yearly basis for a frigging quarter of a century explains it all.

Those in power want to keep their underlings as underlings; the Roman "panem et circensem" is applicable. The Burmese and Malays got rid of their British colonial powers, Indochina moved away from the French, Indonesia has no longer the Dutch colonialists ........ but Thailand still has the Thai-Chinese crooks screwing their own people short of slavery.

Carry on distributing overpriced tablets to kids without even the possibility of recharging in powerless villages.

The bill has been written over the least 50 years and is presented on December 31st, 2015. Lets look at the subject in, say 2018 or 2020 again. By then it will not be only the Farangs fault but the entire ASEAN community is marked for screwing those poor little Thais who remain uneducated as their governments pleased them with purchased votes, tablets and minimum salaries they do not deserve as the very same governments made sure that they mandatorily have to fail. The point-of-no-returns got passed years ago; it will take at least one to two generations to bring the general level upto say Philippine standards IF CHANGES ARE MADE HERE AND NOW by professionals for professionals; both in short supply!

How sad indeed!

[finnomick1]

.....and then they'll get their 300 baht per day wage. Being thailand, there's always a catch

[waza]

With zero unemployment increased productivity is the only way to increase manufacturing and agricultural output. Unless they automate, but who would finance this?

Edited May 2, 2013 by waza

[hellodolly]

Well if you think it over upgrading some ones skills is a good idea.

I think Yingluck should demonstrate it to the public by upgrading her skills in helping the poor in Thailand and locking up the people involved in corruption.

[ginjag]

Well if you think it over upgrading some ones skills is a good idea.

I think Yingluck should demonstrate it to the public by upgrading her skills in helping the poor in Thailand and locking up the people involved in corruption.

In most goverment posts you have no need to upgrade your skill-you PAY for promotion-skills not needed.

Applies to most posts---police--county and town office/clerical etc.

I would like to know what her definition of WORKERS is--- farming-it's skills are passed down in family--

could well be upgrading their knowledge of how corruption is best attained.

[chooka]

Marvelous - I can just imagine my boss coming in with that statement

In reality it's Arbeit Macht Frei

lost me, what does it's Arbeit Macht Frei mean? What language is that?

Edited May 2, 2013 by chooka

[lemoncake]

In the mean time i have people calling to apply for a job not knowing the name of the company

Not knowing the job title

Not being able to speak English, while advertising clearly states "must speak English"

Asking for double the advertised salary

Applying for position of a manager with 0 MINUTES experience.

[Soutpeel]

Marvelous - I can just imagine my boss coming in with that statement

In reality it's Arbeit Macht Frei

lost me, what does it's Arbeit Macht Frei mean? What language is that?

German..."work makes you free"....however it was posted over the gate of Aushwich, I think it was....

[OzMick]

With zero unemployment increased productivity is the only way to increase manufacturing and agricultural output. Unless they automate, but who would finance this?

A fast way to increase productivity is to move the large section of the work force involved in (near) subsistence farming into employment that will give them a reasonable income.

[Payboy]

Looking forward to watching ballet in the go-go bars.

[chooka]

Marvelous - I can just imagine my boss coming in with that statement

In reality it's Arbeit Macht Frei

lost me, what does it's Arbeit Macht Frei mean? What language is that?

German..."work makes you free"....however it was posted over the gate of Aushwich, I think it was....

Fair enough, don't speak german so that is why I did not understand the post,

[Thai at Heart]

With zero unemployment increased productivity is the only way to increase manufacturing and agricultural output. Unless they automate, but who would finance this?

A fast way to increase productivity is to move the large section of the work force involved in (near) subsistence farming into employment that will give them a reasonable income.

If only they had built more factories closer to these soon to be liberated workers. Shame they put the factories all by the sea, expecting families to rip themselves up, with no mass transport to get them there.

[Thai at Heart]

Marvelous - I can just imagine my boss coming in with that statement

In reality it's Arbeit Macht Frei

lost me, what does it's Arbeit Macht Frei mean? What language is that?

German..."work makes you free"....however it was posted over the gate of Aushwich, I think it was....

Fair enough, don't speak german so that is why I did not understand the post,

Better to check the meaning and usage before posting stuff like that. Unless, your boss has it behind his desk, in which case, if he asks you to tatoo a company registration number on your arm, better move on.........

[lemoncake]

Looking forward to watching ballet in the go-go bars.

Have you been asleep? they already wear tutu's

[Payboy]

Looking forward to watching ballet in the go-go bars.

Have you been asleep? they already wear tutu's

Heyyyy, I try to stay away from boyz town. Edited May 2, 2013 by Payboy

[livinthailandos]

To lemoncake

All you have mentioned is so true. I can relate as over many years ive had to many people to count apply for jobs and be not qualified for anything but a job as housekeeping. In terms of management jobs good luck finding someone it takes me on average anywhere from 1 - 3 months to get someone.

Sent from my GT-I9300T using Thaivisa Connect Thailand mobile app

[lemoncake]

Looking forward to watching ballet in the go-go bars.

Have you been asleep? they already wear tutu's

Heyyyy, I try to stay away from boyz town.

Try but fail

[philw]

In the mean time i have people calling to apply for a job not knowing the name of the company

Not knowing the job title

Not being able to speak English, while advertising clearly states "must speak English"

Asking for double the advertised salary

Applying for position of a manager with 0 MINUTES experience.

Says it all , really.