Labour shortage in Thailand's hard-disk drive production

[webfact]

Labour shortage in Thailand's hard-disk drive production
By English News



BANGKOK, Oct 23 – Thailand’s hard-disk drive (HDD) manufacturing sector, which earns export revenue of more than Bt400 billion annually, is encountering a critical shortage of technicians and engineers.

A source in the HDD industry said the new investment promotion policy announced by the Board of Investment (BoI) could affect suppliers of HDD parts some of whom may be bankrupt.

At least half of Thailand's parts manufacturing companies may have to close down their business operations due to reduced investment privileges.

Sirirat Iewpadung, deputy chairwoman for operations of Seagate Technology (Thailand), said local HDD manufacturers wanted the government to support the industry to attract their mother companies to invest in research and development in Thailand.

She said industrialists have urged the government to develop education to strengthen the capability and skills of Thai technicians and engineers.

Singapore and Malaysia have been successful in its policy while Thailand should stimulate small and medium enterprises to locally produce machinery instead of solely depending on imported equipment, she said.

Sampan Silpanart, president of the Electronics and Computer Employers Association, said Thailand’s HDD manufacturing expanded 5-10 per cent with a 35-40 per cent market share.

Floods in 2011, the higher trend of tablet and smart phone market and the global economic slowdown have negatively impacted the HDD industry which shrank 25 per cent to only Bt450 million, he said.

He said HDD manufacturers have adjusted accordingly by enhancing their employees’ skills and using more automatic machinery in their production.

The HDD industry has created at least 100,000 jobs but the BoI’s new policy could jeopardise local manufacturing, he said. (MCOT online news)


-- TNA 2013-10-23

[harrry]

Yes it comes down to education.....real education and that is somewhat lacking here sometimes. General courses may be good enough for some things but not Science and Technogy.

[thhMan]

I have had UNI grads apply for positions and gave them simple tests to qualify for a second interview. In one instance, the applicant took a whole day to copy a very simple design I had created. At the end of the day, he was crying because he couldn't do something that he was trained to do at university. His resume was good and I had expected him to fly through this, considering it only took me 5 minutes to create the sample in the first place. It was then that I asked my Thai colleagues what is going on and got the answer that this is what the universities churn out.

There are 2 issues that I noticed. Lack of education and students thinking that they have great skills. It is the education system that is failing and why there are not many skilled Thais floating about. I am sure these HDD companies interview many dozens for a job and continue to be disappointed and can only offer production line work for the applicants.

Yeah, shut down and go elsewhere... Your wasting your time here.

[FangFerang]

I have had UNI grads apply for positions and gave them simple tests to qualify for a second interview. In one instance, the applicant took a whole day to copy a very simple design I had created. At the end of the day, he was crying because he couldn't do something that he was trained to do at university. His resume was good and I had expected him to fly through this, considering it only took me 5 minutes to create the sample in the first place. It was then that I asked my Thai colleagues what is going on and got the answer that this is what the universities churn out.

There are 2 issues that I noticed. Lack of education and students thinking that they have great skills. It is the education system that is failing and why there are not many skilled Thais floating about. I am sure these HDD companies interview many dozens for a job and continue to be disappointed and can only offer production line work for the applicants.

Yeah, shut down and go elsewhere... Your wasting your time here.

You are right..and it is evil that children do not learn here. Ignorance is secondary to paid students and privilege.

[cabanlit]

Two possible forecasts here:

1) Death of an industry in Thailand

2) In come the Filipinos after AEC

More likely 1), manufacturer relocation elsewhere, and Filipinos still get opportunities in the other place. Maybe even in Philippines!

[kotsak]

Those are some big nasty HDDs in the OP photo

[Cloggie]

My experience with 'students'

- the average bargirl in Bangkok / Pattaya speaks better English than a graduated student from a university

- Did a job interview and said to the guy 'Good morning, how are you' - his response "Slowly, slowly please"

If you look for the best Universities in the World, skip the first pages - you will find the first Thai University somewhere at 350 - so don't expect to hire a future Nobel Price winner!

Edited October 24, 2013 by Cloggie

[ExpatOilWorker]

There are actually some very smart and young students in Thailand, but they start their own business and use their extended networks. They are not looking for a job in an industrial park 70 km from Bangkok, working 6 days a week.

[h90]

Those are some big nasty HDDs in the OP photo

Before they try to find skilled staff that can produce them, they need to find someone who can even recognize one when he sees one

"Which of the three photos shows a harddisk"

a)

c)

[JoeThePoster]

Those are some big nasty HDDs in the OP photo

Before they try to find skilled staff that can produce them, they need to find someone who can even recognize one when he sees one

"Which of the three photos shows a harddisk"

a)

c)

More like a labour shortage in journalism.

[belg]

time too... pay your workers a descent wage?

or maybe allow some farangs, looooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooool

i ment indians

[Sydebolle]

What are you moaning about?

This is Thailand and time is not ripe yet for all those uneducated buffaloes out there to realize who they have been taken on a huge ride on the merry-go-round called Thailand by the selected few!

Any changes have to come from within. Wait for AEC2016 - nothing will happen as the government will gladly cope with ASEAN citizens applying for Thailand as ......... long as these ASEAN citizens speak and write Thai.

Once those ASEAN citizens are in (as this "Thai" thing will not stand) working at the same wages as their uneducated Thai counterparts the tensions will rise. Indonesians work for half the money with fluent English (so witnessed in Bali), Philippinos and Philippinas will work for half the money with fluent English in hospitality industry.

Those ignorant, uneducated work force (with which I presently have to try to keep a business running) will be out and gone; every Thai leaving will be replaced by a non-Thai in their own country. Result is tension will rise against those ASEAN citizens after millions of Thais are unemployed watching the buffaloes going by in Isan.

Thailand has passed the point-of-no-return some 20 years ago; if you throw out all those school books and fire all those ignorant teachers and put a proper education system in place today .............. it still will take some 2 generations to grip; regretfully Thailand does not have so much time left. A smooth transition seems unlikely as Thais are superior to the rest of the planet, know everything better and are so much smarter. It is evident everywhere, all the time with everything.

Who is to blame? The Thai voters being brainwashed into "democracy" while the various establishments translated that straight into "feudalism". Well, the latter have parked their zillions offshore and hold considerable interests in Thailand ... while Thailand lasts.

I hope I am absolutely wrong as there are so many nice lovely Thais out there - but after 28 years in the Land ...........

[BugJackBaron]

I met a young lady who worked for Seagate in Thailand a while ago.

They actually paid for her English lessons and she spoke English quite well.

She mentioned she had some health problems from working on the

production floor but they paid well.

She now works in retail in Pattaya.