I am uncertain as to how the Thai unemployment rate is calculated.

Most Western countries calculate the rate from the number of out of work benefit claimants.

Does Thailand provide social benefit to the unemployed ?

Some people think that to get these figures on unemployment, the government uses the number of people collecting unemployment insurance (UI) benefits under state or federal government programs. But some people are still jobless when their benefits run out, and many more are not eligible at all or delay or never apply for benefits. So, quite clearly, UI information cannot be used as a source for complete information on the number of unemployed. Other people think that the government counts every unemployed person each month. To do this, every home in the country would have to be contacted—just as in the population census every 10 years. This procedure would cost way too much and take far too long to produce the data. The government conducts a monthly survey called the Current Population Survey (CPS) to measure the extent of unemployment in the country (USA). http://www.bls.gov/cps/cps_htgm.htm

This is also how Thailand computes unemployment - the same method as the USA and most Western countries.

http://web.nso.go.th/

Here's what a saw on my 5 min walk to the MRT today: 4 security guards, 5 waiters, 3 cooks, 1 Somtam seller, 2 coffee stands, +/- 10 Mororbike taxi drivers and hundreds of people waiting for a bus or walking to MRT. I DIDN'T see a single beggar. Now despite what some people say, I consider the motorbike guys and coffee sellers etc to be employed. They probably make a lot more than a lot of graduates in ''corporate'' jobs...so I'm inclined to believe unemployment is low. I admit that other people see different things i.e. drunks on the street, but even if in Nakhon Nowhere where 30% of the population of 1000 is doing nothing (and I've never been to a part of Thailand where I saw so many people doing nothing) it doesn't mean you can expand your local situation to the whole country. I challenge the posters that claim they live in (what sound like glorified open air crack houses when you listen to them complain....why move there anyway ) to come back with real figures: Tomorrow count all the people doing nothing in your little slice of heaven and the report back.

I wouldn't get to upset about it all, some of the posters claiming large numbers of unemployed in their villages, don't even live here and are just recalling from memory what they think they saw, when they last visited their, ahem, girlfriend's home!

If you define unemployment as an individual who don't pay income tax, then unemployment would be around 90%.

You made that figure up. You could have looked it up.

So Thailand has low unemployment AND low taxes.

Smart people these Thais, everyone has a job and most don't pay tax. Great system.

Does Thailand really want to be taken Seriously.

Does Thailand really want to be taken Seriously.

In the matter of statistics I believe they do. Read the link and the surveys and data collection methods and you will come to the same conclusion.

http://web.nso.go.th/en/stat_theme_socpop.htm

• Skill Development Survey
• Fertility in Thailand
• Housing
• Household Energy Consumption
• Migration
• Mass Media(Radio and Television)
• Older Person in Thailand
• Population Changes
• Timeuse
• Population Characteristics
• Child and Youth

• Labour Demand of Establishment
• High Qualify Man Power
• Homework in Thailand
• Informal Employed Persons
• Labour Force