Employee Welfare Fund - Thai Employee Welfare Act for Condo Staff

[hgarwood]

Does anyone have any experience/knowledge of a condominium office staff and the requirement for an employee welfare fund as described in the Thai Law? I am currently on the committee of our condominium and this question has come up.

Under the Labor Protection Act of Thailand, the employees of a business operation having ten or more employees must be members of the Employee Welfare Fund. This fund is mandatory (unless the employer has a registered Provident Fund, which I think is something like a profit sharing program).

The Welfare Fund has the same objective as a Provident Fund, which is to provide financial security for the employees in case they resign or retire from work, and for their beneficiaries in case they die.

The employee's and the employer's contributions will be in accordance with the rates prescribed in the Ministerial Regulation but not exceeding 5% of the employee's wage.

But then I read that it states "The Employee Welfare Fund is to be established and managed by the Employee Welfare Fund Committee upon enactment of a respective Royal Decree, which has not yet been issued."

So, it would appear that unless the Royal Decree was issued, then the Welfare Fund Committee would not have been set up and therefore there is no basis for establishing an employer's Welfare Fund as described above. I would appreciate hearing from anyone who has any knowledge on this. Thanks.