PM Prayut rejects minimum wage increase

[webfact]

PM rejects minimum wage increase



BANGKOK: -- Prime Minister Prayut Chan-ocha has rejected outright a call by a labour activist group for the adjustment of minimum wage from 300 baht/day to 360 baht/day to be enforced across the country.

He said that the minimum wage should be determined by the skills of each individual worker and that it should be assessed by the Ministry of Labour.

Citing a survey of the daily expenses of an average worker, Ms Wilaiwan sae Tia, president of the Thai Labour Reconciliation Committee, said that the appropriate minimum wage should be 360 baht which should be enough for a worker to make a humble living. She expected that the tri-partite Wage Committee would respond to the committee’s demand.

Ms Wilaiwan went on saying that the committee disagreed with multiple minimum wages in accordance with the economic conditions of each respective province, pointing out that workers in some provinces do not have bargaining power because there are no labour unions in those provinces.

She also warned that the labour group would resort to some actions if its call for the increase of minimum wage was rejected.

Source: http://englishnews.thaipbs.or.th/pm-rejects-minimum-wage-increase


-- Thai PBS 2015-06-25

[h90]

common sense...Well done Mr. Prayut

[clockman]

But how are they going to buy the I PHONE 6?

[Cuchulainn]

or the 50" LED Smart TV when the kids are running around <deleted> naked

[phoenixdoglover]

Cleary the PM does not understand the reason for a minimum wage. It has very little to do with the skill level of the individual.

[CantSpell]

He said that the minimum wage should be determined by the skills of each individual worker and that it should be assessed by the Ministry of Labour.

So the Ministry of Labour is going the assess the skills of all the workers one by one and determine how much each are going to get paid?

Great idea, should be finished around August most probably..

2025...

[tbthailand]

He said that the minimum wage should be determined by the skills of each individual worker ...

as someone just noted, this kind of statement proves his ignorance with regard to the purpose of the minimum wage.

But that is not a surprise coming from a millionaire former general who obviously "earned" his wages base on his individual "skills".

Whadda jerk.

[bangkokfrog]

At least with this government you soon learn where things are. No need for expert reports, community consultation, cabinet discussions, etc. Thank goodness for our all-seeing, all-knowing fearless leader who can do or say no wrong (and is a dab hand at banana throwing as well).

[Thai at Heart]

He said that the minimum wage should be determined by the skills of each individual worker

Huh? Nice to see he gets the logic and reasoning behind a minimum wage.....numpty

[rubl]

"Ms Wilaiwan went on saying that the committee disagreed with multiple minimum wages in accordance with the economic conditions of each respective province, pointing out that workers in some provinces do not have bargaining power because there are no labour unions in those provinces."

So, will Ms. Wilaiwan as president of the Thai Labour Reconciliation Committee start the process of having Labour Unions in those provinces?

[Srikcir]

If laborers could reject General Prayut, he might not be so arrogant.

[ksamuiguy]

It would be interesting to hear different peoples definition of POOR!

In the early 60's when I first came to Thailand i was obviously in the North East.

By my standards everyone was poor.

After a very short time I learned that all the material things I had were not necessary to "be happy".or to live like a Thai.

I will not bore you with my learning experiences, but I have not seen many POOR people here in Thailand.

Those that I seen and talked to many that are "apparently", obviously poor by western standards.

Most have chosen to live this way, yes they want more "Things", but is the majority of cases are "Happy".

I would say 99% of the THAI'S in The Kingdom are Happy.

If you believe that figure that means the 700,000 of the 70,000,000 people are not happy.

Given this forum, pessimism over the last 2-3 years, they will only find the 700,000.(1%)

Because the happy people are satiated to live their lives and there nothing to tell!

No one reports, tells the "Good Things", 99% are "Good Things"

[PilotEd]

Here's all the proof you need that Prayut is beholden to the corporate elite.

Keep them barefoot and pregnant and begging for any job just to buy a bowl of rice.

[oneday]

I have an exercise for you Mr. P. Go live on 300 baht a day for one month then come back and make a decision.

You will not be allowed to have a phone. You must try to save money for a phone and at the end of 1 month see how much you have managed to save. Extrapolate this one month of savings to determine how long it will take you to save enough for the phone you want. You must live in a rented room with no air conditioning or refrigerator. After all, how could you save if you had AC and a refrigerator. Alternatively, you could save for a refrigerator, but we all know the first technology a Thai needs is a phone.

You will be allowed one rife so you can hunt rats or anything other wild live creatures to help feed yourself. Relatives can supply your Kao Neow. Be careful not to pick vegetables from growing crops people own. Wild vegetables/plants/flowers will be just fine.

Happy trails Mr. P.

[lertsang]

Come on, people, can't you see the cycle our PM is trying to prevent? Have you not noticed the inflation in the supermarket...or even the open-air markets...since that 300 baht hike in the minimum wage???? Minimum wage shoots up, some factory owners buy machinery and opt for lay-offs, others just find excuses to fire a good part of their workforce and make their existing employees work harder in fewer numbers, still others sell out or close their doors for good. Sure, minimum wage is up, but it's hurting the very people it is supposed to help. The affluent can handle a certain amount of inflation, but minimum wage employees simply cannot. Minimum Wage Hike = Skyrocketing Inflation and Unemployment....HOW ARE THEY HELPED? Don't get me wrong...the minimum wage needs to be raised in Thailand, but very gradually. The economy has barely begun to recover from our former PM's 300 baht, so we should stay where we are for now. This sudden leap to 300 baht has put more SME businesspeople and minimum wage workers in debt just to keep up with expenses....just sayin'.

[Jai Dee]

One post referring to the government as a dictatorship has been removed from this thread.

From the pinned topic in the News Forum:

Please use discretion in your references to the government. Phrases which can be considered as anti-coup will be removed. Referring to Thailand or the government as a dictatorship, military dictatorship or other such terms will be removed.

[shaurene]

common sense...Well done Mr. Prayut

h90

It is obvious you have been here long time with your amount of post's. Do you really think 300 a day is enough for say a worker who has a wife and kids to live on, or a women on her own who's husband has pissed of, with couple kids and old mother to take care of, come on Man, get real. God, 60 Baht extra a day would mean so much to a worker. Around £1 or Us$2.

You are obviously in favour of slave labour. Let's see what you would say if you where on your countries Pension and they decided to cut it by half saying this should be enough for you to live on in Thailand. You would not be saying to your government "Well done"

[h90]

or the 50" LED Smart TV when the kids are running around <deleted> naked

If you didn't notice it, Thailand is pretty warm, beside protecting yourself from religious hypocrite there is no reason to wear clothes in Thailand, specially for children.

[h90]

common sense...Well done Mr. Prayut

h90

It is obvious you have been here long time with your amount of post's. Do you really think 300 a day is enough for say a worker who has a wife and kids to live on, or a women on her own who's husband has pissed of, with couple kids and old mother to take care of, come on Man, get real. God, 60 Baht extra a day would mean so much to a worker. Around £1 or Us$2.

You are obviously in favour of slave labour. Let's see what you would say if you where on your countries Pension and they decided to cut it by half saying this should be enough for you to live on in Thailand. You would not be saying to your government "Well done"

How will the woman do with 0 Baht instead of 300 Baht because the factory close and move to Cambodia?

Actually you can't find a home maid for 12.000 Baht in Bangkok if you expect that she REALLY works 5 days a week. Outside the Myanmar labor who build our house get 300 Baht per day (=9000 Baht per month) and the foreman (from Myanmar) gets 400 Baht. That is my only known example of hard working people who get 300 Baht.

If you increase the salaries, what do you think the food prices will do? They'll increase the same, like last time. Get 20 % more, spend 20 % more. Loose exports or devalue the Baht the same amount. It doesn't help the poor at all.

If you want to help them: improve schools, improve their skills, but how do you do that with someone who drink a bottle lao kao?

[phoenixdoglover]

or the 50" LED Smart TV when the kids are running around <deleted> naked

If you didn't notice it, Thailand is pretty warm, beside protecting yourself from religious hypocrite there is no reason to wear clothes in Thailand, specially for children.

I'm at a loss for words.

[Shawn0001]

It would be interesting to hear different peoples definition of POOR!

In the early 60's when I first came to Thailand i was obviously in the North East.

By my standards everyone was poor.

After a very short time I learned that all the material things I had were not necessary to "be happy".or to live like a Thai.

I will not bore you with my learning experiences, but I have not seen many POOR people here in Thailand.

Those that I seen and talked to many that are "apparently", obviously poor by western standards.

Most have chosen to live this way, yes they want more "Things", but is the majority of cases are "Happy".

I would say 99% of the THAI'S in The Kingdom are Happy.

If you believe that figure that means the 700,000 of the 70,000,000 people are not happy.

Given this forum, pessimism over the last 2-3 years, they will only find the 700,000.(1%)

Because the happy people are satiated to live their lives and there nothing to tell!

No one reports, tells the "Good Things", 99% are "Good Things"

"It would be interesting to hear different peoples definition of POOR!"

Why not start with your own definition? All you have done is state that you used to think that Thai people were poor and now you have come to the conclusion that 99% are happy. So, how do you define poverty? Your post infers that you feel that poverty is the opposite of happiness?!?!?!?

There is a big difference between living in absolute poverty and being poor. Absolute poverty is defined as lacking in basic human needs such as water, food, shelter and health care. There are very few people living in absolute poverty in Thailand but there are many, many poor people in Thailand. For example, the many farmers who own so little land that they will never afford machinery or the many people in so much debt that they will not pay it back within their lifetime.

[DLock]

Here's all the proof you need that Prayut is beholden to the corporate elite.

Keep them barefoot and pregnant and begging for any job just to buy a bowl of rice.

Just in case you hadn't noticed, Thailand barely has any unemployment.

Thai's don't need to beg for a job, there are thousands of jobs available if they want to work.

But nice try.

[eliotness]

If you are a good employer and you workers work hard and well, it is in your interest to reward them. It is my (albeit limited) experience here that some workers deserve much more than 300 baht, but unfortunately they are not the majority and some workers are not even worth 200 baht.

A rise in the general minimum wage would reduce the incentive for potentially good workers to work harder. Bit of a double edged sword.

[Old Man River]

He said that the minimum wage should be determined by the skills of each individual worker ...

as someone just noted, this kind of statement proves his ignorance with regard to the purpose of the minimum wage.

But that is not a surprise coming from a millionaire former general who obviously "earned" his wages base on his individual "skills".

Whadda jerk.

TBThailand, regardless of the basis of the decision, do you think it was the right decision? In other words, do you agree with the PM that he made the right decision?

[sitti]

common sense...Well done Mr. Prayut

h90

It is obvious you have been here long time with your amount of post's. Do you really think 300 a day is enough for say a worker who has a wife and kids to live on, or a women on her own who's husband has pissed of, with couple kids and old mother to take care of, come on Man, get real. God, 60 Baht extra a day would mean so much to a worker. Around £1 or Us$2.

You are obviously in favour of slave labour. Let's see what you would say if you where on your countries Pension and they decided to cut it by half saying this should be enough for you to live on in Thailand. You would not be saying to your government "Well done"

Increase minimum wage will, without any question, hurt small-medium businesses. When they increased the minimum last time, many businesses had to cut back their employees/workers.

[Shawn0001]

Come on, people, can't you see the cycle our PM is trying to prevent? Have you not noticed the inflation in the supermarket...or even the open-air markets...since that 300 baht hike in the minimum wage???? Minimum wage shoots up, some factory owners buy machinery and opt for lay-offs, others just find excuses to fire a good part of their workforce and make their existing employees work harder in fewer numbers, still others sell out or close their doors for good. Sure, minimum wage is up, but it's hurting the very people it is supposed to help. The affluent can handle a certain amount of inflation, but minimum wage employees simply cannot. Minimum Wage Hike = Skyrocketing Inflation and Unemployment....HOW ARE THEY HELPED? Don't get me wrong...the minimum wage needs to be raised in Thailand, but very gradually. The economy has barely begun to recover from our former PM's 300 baht, so we should stay where we are for now. This sudden leap to 300 baht has put more SME businesspeople and minimum wage workers in debt just to keep up with expenses....just sayin'.

Do you have some evidence to support your claims?

This paper is an interesting read and according to their results the negative effects of the last minimum wage increase were out weighed by the benefits, in fact the only negetive effect they noted was an increase in difficulty for the unemployed to gain employment, no evidence of job losses at all.

http://ftp.iza.org/dp7911.pdf

[Jimlove]

Poor People of Thailand : Dont expect any help from your PM as he Work for the rich families in BKK and they have absolutely no desire of sharing their power and control over Thailand - They just want .. Status Quo ...

[Petchou]

common sense...Well done Mr. Prayut

Can you live on 300/baht a day?

[billd766]

I have an exercise for you Mr. P. Go live on 300 baht a day for one month then come back and make a decision.

You will not be allowed to have a phone. You must try to save money for a phone and at the end of 1 month see how much you have managed to save. Extrapolate this one month of savings to determine how long it will take you to save enough for the phone you want. You must live in a rented room with no air conditioning or refrigerator. After all, how could you save if you had AC and a refrigerator. Alternatively, you could save for a refrigerator, but we all know the first technology a Thai needs is a phone.

You will be allowed one rife so you can hunt rats or anything other wild live creatures to help feed yourself. Relatives can supply your Kao Neow. Be careful not to pick vegetables from growing crops people own. Wild vegetables/plants/flowers will be just fine.

Happy trails Mr. P.

Will you do the same?

Happy trails, oneday.

[CanInBKK]

common sense...Well done Mr. Prayut

h90

It is obvious you have been here long time with your amount of post's. Do you really think 300 a day is enough for say a worker who has a wife and kids to live on, or a women on her own who's husband has pissed of, with couple kids and old mother to take care of, come on Man, get real. God, 60 Baht extra a day would mean so much to a worker. Around £1 or Us$2.

You are obviously in favour of slave labour. Let's see what you would say if you where on your countries Pension and they decided to cut it by half saying this should be enough for you to live on in Thailand. You would not be saying to your government "Well done"

I think you fail to see that a person on "minimum wage" whatever amount it is has no business having kids. Before you all jump to conclusions, what I mean is that "minimum wage" is not meant to support people for the duration of their lives, it's meant as a stepping stone between higher education and ultimately what can be defined as a "career".