Japanese Investors Concerned with Thai Labor Force
BY JACOB MASLOW



BANGKOK: -- Japanese investors have raised concerns that Thai workers are not able to meet the needs of major companies. Automotive suppliers and car makers expressed their concerns as they attempt to build an Asean hub in Thailand. Investors state that Thais fail to meet their needs.

Shiro Sadoshima, Japanese ambassador to Thailand, has called on the government to invest in education. Mr. Shiro believes investing in education in the country will allow Thai works to match the demands of the Japanese industry.

Mr. Shiro does note that Thailand has a policy to improve labor standards and skills in the country, but the skills are not up to standard as of yet. He further stated that Japan has invested in its educational system and has funds allocated to training and educating their workforce.

Full story: https://ethailand.com/business-news/japanese-investors-concerned-with-thai-labor-force/1868/

-- eThailand 2016-03-24

I grew pretty much every gray hair I have, and lost a lot of it (I was tearing it out) working with Thai folks.

They just couldn't grasp so many things.

NEVER AGAIN.

"Investors state that Thais fail to meet their needs"

Thai education fails in both aspects: raising both IQ and EQ. They should relook at their 'No-Fail' policy. Carrots will not work without the stick.

The Japanese are not very happy about many things in Thailand

that is why a lot of company's are moving out of Thailand not just the Japanese.

There is a lot of talk on FB about it.

They are too busy preparing horrible English for Asean.

Japanese investors have raised concerns that Thai workers are not able to meet the needs of major companies.

Not exactly a bombshell here, is it?

10 people to do the job of one person, and they still can't get it right.

Shiro Sadoshima, Japanese ambassador to Thailand, has called on the government to invest in education.

LOL.

Doesn't the ambassador understand that "face" is more important than education?

In a culture where deficits and mistakes can't be acknowledged, education is impossible.

Every time I read about a multi national plans to open a mega factories and manufacturing base in Thailand

I ask myself where are they going to get the work force from where by the average Thai worker become

to be not interested in getting their hand dirty and runs away from the menial hard work leaving it to workers

from neighboring countries.....

Well that is what happens in a culture where the rich and powerful take FACE and STATUS so seriously at the expenses of brainwashing threatening the rest of the nation at all costs in their brain damaging education system.

Every time I read about a multi national plans to open a mega factories and manufacturing base in Thailand

I ask myself where are they going to get the work force from where by the average Thai worker become

to be not interested in getting their hand dirty and runs away from the menial hard work leaving it to workers

from neighboring countries.....

The few I worked with wanted nothing less than to MILK the job. They'd have air ratchets & impact wrenches laying at their feet & wanted to do everything manually.

They also had the organizational skills and attention spans of a gnat (the little bug that flies hither & thither & drives you nuts).

I REALLY wanted to fire one guy, but couldn't as his brother would have quit.... The company owner didn't want to lose the older brother so kept the younger guy on.

AAAARRRGHHH!

Having to train Thais at work on machines they have never ever seen,

or probably heard about, it is a two way street you so called trainers,

have to identify skills in each individual worker, move them around the organisational

operations as needed,

I have trained people all over the world, and Thai workers i have are treated with respect,

constantly praised, constantly shown the right way ,

gentle pushing of the safety and the correct

re enforcing of methods,

I have faith in the Thai fellows here that by the end will have many feathers and skills they can wear in their hat.

Now being able to leave some of these fellows alone and watch them work to the standards set is a pleasure, and it will

all re start again as more equipment rolls into the project,

Failing to teach some one or lift skill set is a failure on the teacher / imparted skill set.

At my Honda-dealer they even can't pump a tire, also they don't have a manometre in the shop...They have 3-400 new Honda's though and loads of "engineers".

Also they even can't tighten a nut properly, it will come loose within a day.

When they repair or change a tire they use screwdrivers to put it on the wheel.

I can understand the Japanese get tired of that.

Schooling and upbringing of course are an issue. There was a very good article in a major Bangkok newspaper today about how so many children in Isaan are being raised by their grandparents or just a grandmother, while the mother is working in Bangkok. This can perpetuate poor learning for the next generation.

Teflon Thailand, is no more. Because of Patronage and slander,libel laws. The country is still third world and will be for another 50 years.

At my Honda-dealer they even can't pump a tire, also they don't have a manometre in the shop...They have 3-400 new Honda's though and loads of "engineers".

Also they even can't tighten a nut properly, it will come loose within a day.

When they repair or change a tire they use screwdrivers to put it on the wheel.

I can understand the Japanese get tired of that.

Shut up khaaabbb

Thai people do labor? The quality of the 'thai' labor force has dropped significantly since it became harder for Burmese or Cambodians to work here ??

Hardly novel opinion from HE The Japanese Ambassador; with the current reactionaries in power touting the supposed virtues of 'Thainess', one primary tenet of which is for people to know and keep in their place, it is hardly surprising that education, apprenticeship and learning in general are, if anything, slipping backwards, while the country's peers move ahead.

Thailand had a window of opportunity from the late seventies to the mid-nineties. During that period, the demography, economic and social conditions were ripe for the country to make progress on many fronts. Instead, the forces of entrenched privilege and political opportunism made sure that the status quo was maintained.

Mr. Shiro does note that Thailand has a policy to improve labor standards and skills in the country, but the skills are not up to standard as of yet. He further stated that Japan has invested in its educational system and has funds allocated to training and educating their workforce.

Thailand also has a budget to improve it's educational system. It's a huge budget, which flows in all directions....The problem is, that an improved education of the masses is counterproductive to the elite's interest.

Having to train Thais at work on machines they have never ever seen,

or probably heard about, it is a two way street you so called trainers,

have to identify skills in each individual worker, move them around the organisational

operations as needed,

I have trained people all over the world, and Thai workers i have are treated with respect,

constantly praised, constantly shown the right way ,

gentle pushing of the safety and the correct

re enforcing of methods,

I have faith in the Thai fellows here that by the end will have many feathers and skills they can wear in their hat.

Now being able to leave some of these fellows alone and watch them work to the standards set is a pleasure, and it will

all re start again as more equipment rolls into the project,

Failing to teach some one or lift skill set is a failure on the teacher / imparted skill set.

+1 So, so true...

They are capable of learning, just like everybody else, it's just finding the right way to communicate with them.

I've noticed over the last few years that some of them turn out to be very reliable, honest and professional and are really proud to do a good day's work.

Training and praise go a long way.

Yes, but take Toyota as an example

They have four plants in Thailand, only one in Russia, three in China.

The japanese ambassodors little spiel, just a kick up the bum talk

Anecdotal stories from others, just that

But if the most well branded Japanese car maker sticks more plants in Thailand than it does China, well, thats closer to the reality

......there you have it in a nutshell.......

Now it's just waiting for an announcement from the government that all thses education and skill issues will be solve within the next 6 months.

Though there is even a bigger chance that super general will deny the concerns and declare that in fact Thai workers are among the best skilled in the world, but that the Japanese don't understand.

Yes, but take Toyota as an example

They have four plants in Thailand, only one in Russia, three in China.

The japanese ambassodors little spiel, just a kick up the bum talk

Anecdotal stories from others, just that

But if the most well branded Japanese car maker sticks more plants in Thailand than it does China, well, thats closer to the reality

Seems you overlooked the Toyota factories in Indonesia, Philippines and Vietnam for some reason.

At my Honda-dealer they even can't pump a tire, also they don't have a manometre in the shop...They have 3-400 new Honda's though and loads of "engineers".

Also they even can't tighten a nut properly, it will come loose within a day.

When they repair or change a tire they use screwdrivers to put it on the wheel.

I can understand the Japanese get tired of that.

I have found that the workers at the official Honda dealer in Surin are highly professional and skilled at their job, they also take a great deal of trouble at customer satisfaction.

Generally i have found that if you hire a Thai professional, not Somchai who works as a part time painter,brick layer and mechanic, you get a good job done at a fair price.

Schooling and upbringing of course are an issue. There was a very good article in a major Bangkok newspaper today about how so many children in Isaan are being raised by their grandparents or just a grandmother, while the mother is working in Bangkok. This can perpetuate poor learning for the next generation.

Yes indeed, lived in Isaan a good few years, It is structured that way send the daughter off to work wherever and grandma takes care of child. It has nothing to do with take care of the child, it is all about must send money for mother because she takes care of child.

The child learns nothing more, than a child 500 years ago would have learned, often as young as 3 or 4 walking a good few meters behind grandma on a busy road (that's taking care?),

Grandma only knows about how to gather food, whether it be from rice field or jungle and that is all she can teach.

Having employed many Isaans years ago, I could never understand how: if there was a 50%-50% of getting something right or wrong then 90% of the time they would get it wrong.

What they don't have and what they need, is proper Thai teachers, who have knowledge and not just a piece of paper and the commitment to do things properly (No cheating just to get pass numbers)

Thailand has a policy to improve labour standards? Really?

At my Honda-dealer they even can't pump a tire, also they don't have a manometre in the shop...They have 3-400 new Honda's though and loads of "engineers".

Also they even can't tighten a nut properly, it will come loose within a day.

When they repair or change a tire they use screwdrivers to put it on the wheel.

I can understand the Japanese get tired of that.

I have found that the workers at the official Honda dealer in Surin are highly professional and skilled at their job, they also take a great deal of trouble at customer satisfaction.

Generally i have found that if you hire a Thai professional, not Somchai who works as a part time painter,brick layer and mechanic, you get a good job done at a fair price.

Second that. The official Honda place I go to in Korat City is always spotless, well organized and the staff are well equipped and trained and quite friendly.

how do you fix lazy or being unreliable

Every time I read about a multi national plans to open a mega factories and manufacturing base in Thailand

I ask myself where are they going to get the work force from where by the average Thai worker become

to be not interested in getting their hand dirty and runs away from the menial hard work leaving it to workers

from neighboring countries.....

The few I worked with wanted nothing less than to MILK the job. They'd have air ratchets & impact wrenches laying at their feet & wanted to do everything manually.

They also had the organizational skills and attention spans of a gnat (the little bug that flies hither & thither & drives you nuts).

I REALLY wanted to fire one guy, but couldn't as his brother would have quit.... The company owner didn't want to lose the older brother so kept the younger guy on.

AAAARRRGHHH!

That actually has a ring of leadership failure to it, as well as retaining undesirables. Yes, i do fully understand replacing workers here, pros & cons.

As regards the OP, it is extremely vague as to where the disapproval of Thai labour is failing. If they are talking about manual labour they should be concentrating on in-house training to get the workers up to a satisfactory level for their specific tasks within the company. No real need for formal education there.

University educated management positions; unless there is a requirement for very pretty powerpoint presentations ahead of technical knowledge, OK, maybe they have a point.

They could also try to pay them a respectable wage, but that of course would defeat the main reason that they are in Thailand in the first place...........................

Having to train Thais at work on machines they have never ever seen,

or probably heard about, it is a two way street you so called trainers,

have to identify skills in each individual worker, move them around the organisational

operations as needed,

I have trained people all over the world, and Thai workers i have are treated with respect,

constantly praised, constantly shown the right way ,

gentle pushing of the safety and the correct

re enforcing of methods,

I have faith in the Thai fellows here that by the end will have many feathers and skills they can wear in their hat.

Now being able to leave some of these fellows alone and watch them work to the standards set is a pleasure, and it will

all re start again as more equipment rolls into the project,

Failing to teach some one or lift skill set is a failure on the teacher / imparted skill set.

+1 So, so true...

They are capable of learning, just like everybody else, it's just finding the right way to communicate with them.

I've noticed over the last few years that some of them turn out to be very reliable, honest and professional and are really proud to do a good day's work.

Training and praise go a long way.

Last sentence....Sounds like you are training a golden retriever.

At my Honda-dealer they even can't pump a tire, also they don't have a manometre in the shop...They have 3-400 new Honda's though and loads of "engineers".

Also they even can't tighten a nut properly, it will come loose within a day.

When they repair or change a tire they use screwdrivers to put it on the wheel.

I can understand the Japanese get tired of that.

My woman bought herself a nice new E Sport Toyota and insists that the technical staff in the dealership (in Korat) told her to switch off the accessories, especially the aircon, before switching off the engine. So we have this weird routine happening each time we stop.

I'm given a sad face when I drive and switch off the engine without any of that nonsense.

It's a little bit like whan she cleans her teeth before breakfast . . . don't know where she got that from.