Suvarnabhumi luggage staff go on strike, call for bonus and raise

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Suvarnabhumi luggage staff go on strike, call for bonus and raise

By Coconuts Bangkok

 

Photo: Workpoint

 

BANGKOK: -- Baggage handlers at Suvarnabhumi International Airport are on strike and demanding a missing year-end bonus and pay raise from their outsourced security company.

 

Three-hundred employees from Asia Security Management Co. Ltd, which provides security and baggage check services for the airport, held a protest on the first floor of the terminal last night.

 

A representative from the company initially agreed only to raise their monthly salary from THB9,000 to THB9,300 in accordance to the new minimum wage rate with at least a one-month bonus at the end of the year.

 

Full story: http://bangkok.coconuts.co/2017/02/06/suvarnabhumi-luggage-staff-go-strike-call-bonus-and-raise

 

-- © Copyright Coconuts Bangkok 2017-02-06

[thai3]

More people on the 9k a month pittance should do the same,

[Thian]

Maybe next year you guys get a bonus IF you all have learned some decent english language....it's shamefull the way they sapea inlit...very unprofessional.

[Kasset Tak]

I don't understand how they expect anyone to work at Suvarnabhumi for 9k when my friends even has to pay their farmhands more than 300 Baht a day just to find anyone that want to work!
One of my has a pig farm and he pay from 9k a month depending on qualification. Now he has 15 employees, all from Myanmar just because no one in the local villages want to work in the farm for only 9k but on the other hand there are many people from the villages around his farm that are working in BKK (taxi, MBK and so on) for 9k a month!? Another example using my friend is that he has been looking to hire a veterinarian for over a year, normal starting salary for veterinarians is about 20K up 30k in BKK, my friend has been offering 40k/month but no one has been interested because it's is up north and on the countryside, not in a big city!

Which would you choose?
Leave home province, rent room/apartment and all the extra cost for living and working in BKK and get 9k a month.
Live at home, work at a local farm or company and get 9k a month.

Many people seems to be obsessed with living and working in Bangkok...

[robblok]

29 minutes ago, Kasset Tak said:

I don't understand how they expect anyone to work at Suvarnabhumi for 9k when my friends even has to pay their farmhands more than 300 Baht a day just to find anyone that want to work!
One of my has a pig farm and he pay from 9k a month depending on qualification. Now he has 15 employees, all from Myanmar just because no one in the local villages want to work in the farm for only 9k but on the other hand there are many people from the villages around his farm that are working in BKK (taxi, MBK and so on) for 9k a month!? Another example using my friend is that he has been looking to hire a veterinarian for over a year, normal starting salary for veterinarians is about 20K up 30k in BKK, my friend has been offering 40k/month but no one has been interested because it's is up north and on the countryside, not in a big city!

Which would you choose?
Leave home province, rent room/apartment and all the extra cost for living and working in BKK and get 9k a month.
Live at home, work at a local farm or company and get 9k a month.

Many people seems to be obsessed with living and working in Bangkok...

Because Bangkok has it all... it might not be to your taste but to many it is. Bangkok has far more than any upcountry village or city. At some time I was thinking about relocating.. but i quickly changed my mind. I would be bored to death and there would be no shops that I like. 

 

Now that goes for me.. but for a lot of Thais too, you are different so are some Thais.. but most are not. If i were a vet id want to work in BKK too. Why make money if you can't spend it on the things you like and are locked up in a small town.

 

OT 9000 is a pittance.. but its a starting salary.. not sure how much work they have to do, and it is probably not as hard work as on a pig farm. I know what I would choose.

[Reigntax]

Its all because of being overworked due TAT attracting the millions of new tourists.

 

[starky]

51 minutes ago, Thian said:

Maybe next year you guys get a bonus IF you all have learned some decent english language....it's shamefull the way they sapea inlit...very unprofessional.

How often you having a conversation with baggage handlers mate? I dont think their English language skill really has a bearing on their job, but hey, you know, deny the natives a pay rise, silly beggars should learn to speak the Queens English correctly

[starky]

Wasnt the minimum pay rise meant to go up 100 baht a day? And what these lousy scumbags wont even pony up 300 a month? Good on the workers stick staunch ladies and gents hope you get a win. Fyck knows you deserve it.

[robblok]

3 minutes ago, starky said:

Wasnt the minimum pay rise meant to go up 100 baht a day? And what these lousy scumbags wont even pony up 300 a month? Good on the workers stick staunch ladies and gents hope you get a win. Fyck knows you deserve it.

I doubt its just 300 a month.. there were more demands.. not sure how much it is anyway but for sure more then 300 a month. As for the minimum wage going up 100bt a day.. that is crazy.. again 25% on it would make everything here a lot more expensive... and in the end nobody wins. 

 

You can only raise salaries a bit if you do it a lot there should be more productivity for it. Just look what happened last time.

[Kasset Tak]

5 minutes ago, robblok said:

Because Bangkok has it all... it might not be to your taste but to many it is. Bangkok has far more than any upcountry village or city. At some time I was thinking about relocating.. but i quickly changed my mind. I would be bored to death and there would be no shops that I like. 

 

Now that goes for me.. but for a lot of Thais too, you are different so are some Thais.. but most are not. If i were a vet id want to work in BKK too. Why make money if you can't spend it on the things you like and are locked up in a small town.

 

OT 9000 is a pittance.. but its a starting salary.. not sure how much they get for it, and it is probably not as hard work as on a pig farm. I know what I would choose.

Yea, BKK has it all but if you only make 9k a month would you rather stay at your home with no extra costs of living or go to BKK where you have to pay 2-3000 to rent a room, then add transport costs to and from work and only see your family 1-2 times a year?!

I stayed in BKK 3 months then I relocated to the north, living in the village we don't have everything but life is as you say in Thai it's Sabay-sabay. You know, listening to the birds, go down to the river and do some fishing, maybe whole roasted a pig and just enjoy life compared to living in BKK where the noise and traffic jam never stop, you wouldn't eat the fish caught from Chaopraya river, pay 300 Baht for mo katha (compared to 600 I pay for a whole piglet) and and they charge you as a foreigner 2-5 as much as they charge a Thai person!

And yes, people are different. So far most (90%) of those I know who chose to live in BKK comes from big cities and their primary reasons for living in BKK is that it's easy to find ladies for the night and beer/alcohol while most of those who are living in the villages comes from small places and live here because they found love in either a woman or just love this country. 

[starky]

1 minute ago, robblok said:

I doubt its just 300 a month.. there were more demands.. not sure how much it is anyway but for sure more then 300 a month. As for the minimum wage going up 100bt a day.. that is crazy.. again 25% on it would make everything here a lot more expensive... and in the end nobody wins. 

 

You can only raise salaries a bit if you do it a lot there should be more productivity for it. Just look what happened last time.

Im just saying I thought I remember reading it was to go up from 200 baht to 300 baht a day but I am happy to stand corrected. Someone here will know better than me. Though I believe the reason for the big jump was that there had not been an increase in the minimum wage, like, ever.

[gk10002000]

maybe they are just trying to make up for the lost monies from theft, lost baggage etc.  as travelers have smartened up over the years and don't put as many valuables in checked luggage

[fforest1]

9000 A month for moving luggage all day..

Sounds like hellva bad deal to me..

 

I doubt any of you guys would make it through 1 day...

[robblok]

Just now, Kasset Tak said:

Yea, BKK has it all but if you only make 9k a month would you rather stay at your home with no extra costs of living or go to BKK where you have to pay 2-3000 to rent a room, then add transport costs to and from work and only see your family 1-2 times a year?!

I stayed in BKK 3 months then I relocated to the north, living in the village we don't have everything but life is as you say in Thai it's Sabay-sabay. You know, listening to the birds, go down to the river and do some fishing, maybe whole roasted a pig and just enjoy life compared to living in BKK where the noise and traffic jam never stop, you wouldn't eat the fish caught from Chaopraya river, pay 300 Baht for mo katha (compared to 600 I pay for a whole piglet) and and they charge you as a foreigner 2-5 as much as they charge a Thai person!

And yes, people are different. So far most (90%) of those I know who chose to live in BKK comes from big cities and their primary reasons for living in BKK is that it's easy to find ladies for the night and beer/alcohol while most of those who are living in the villages comes from small places and live here because they found love in either a woman or just love this country. 

Obviously people choose BKK otherwise there would not be so many traffic jams during Songkran.

 

What you are saying about listinging to birds and going to a river are nice things that I do enjoy but would get bored of in a couple of months. I rather go from BKK to a place like that for a short holiday and then back to all the other things. I have not seen 300 Baht Mo Katha.. but seen 100 bt Mo Katha. The traffic jams are bad.. but that is why i got a bike and car. I don't get charged more then Thais for foods and got countless of choices to eat from in the malls.

 

Its true its easier here to find a girl if you so want too then in a village, and can be a good reason to stay in BKK but I would say if you are here for the ladies, Pattaya would beat BKK. I came from a small village back in the Netherlands and prefer BKK especially because everything that a foreigner wants can be bought there. I love this country and BKK is nice and central and can be used to go on trips.

 

But again.. not judging you.. you like where you stay and I like where I stay. 

 

Anyway we are totally OT, but I really see why people would want to be in BKK opposed to the small villages.

[robblok]

6 minutes ago, starky said:

Im just saying I thought I remember reading it was to go up from 200 baht to 300 baht a day but I am happy to stand corrected. Someone here will know better than me. Though I believe the reason for the big jump was that there had not been an increase in the minimum wage, like, ever.

That increase has been done a long time ago.. the wage is now 300 bt a day minimum. But after that jump everything increased in price and people did not win that much because everyone wanted more money.. hence everything became more expensive.. you cant just increase only the lowest.. everyone else will want an increase too.. and without increased  productivity nobody wins because everything gets more expensive.

[robblok]

5 minutes ago, fforest1 said:

9000 A month for moving luggage all day..

Sounds like hellva bad deal to me..

 

I doubt any of you guys would make it through 1 day...

 

Care to put your money where your mouth is.. ? (and its not a good deal I agree.. wonder how much is really carrying and how much is not)

[zorro1]

Yea, BKK has it all but if you only make 9k a month would you rather stay at your home with no extra costs of living or go to BKK where you have to pay 2-3000 to rent a room, then add transport costs to and from work and only see your family 1-2 times a year?!

I stayed in BKK 3 months then I relocated to the north, living in the village we don't have everything but life is as you say in Thai it's Sabay-sabay. You know, listening to the birds, go down to the river and do some fishing, maybe whole roasted a pig and just enjoy life compared to living in BKK where the noise and traffic jam never stop, you wouldn't eat the fish caught from Chaopraya river, pay 300 Baht for mo katha (compared to 600 I pay for a whole piglet) and and they charge you as a foreigner 2-5 as much as they charge a Thai person!

And yes, people are different. So far most (90%) of those I know who chose to live in BKK comes from big cities and their primary reasons for living in BKK is that it's easy to find ladies for the night and beer/alcohol while most of those who are living in the villages comes from small places and live here because they found love in either a woman or just love this country. 

Your not making sense. As a thai would I choose baggage handler over pig handler? Paying thai prices for everything and sharing a room 9k is easy doable. You couldn't pay me 90k to live in nakhon nowhere, yapping dogs and squealing pigs ugghhh

[fforest1]

10 minutes ago, robblok said:

 

Care to put your money where your mouth is.. ?

Sure I got 300 baht sitting right here...lol

But you have to take out your transport to the airport and lunch

from the 300 baht..

[jollyhangmon]

Won't matter much at Swampy, would it?

They can't possibly be slower with your luggage even on strike than it takes immigration to let you through to get it in the first place ... 

[robblok]

1 minute ago, fforest1 said:

Sure I got 300 baht sitting right here...lol

Good comeback.. But I think you will be surprised how many here would be able to do that job (physically) not that i would for that amount of money 

[Fookhaht]

So they weren't satisfied from their baggage-pilfering income?

Anyone who has been reading the news for a couple years knows this is not a troll post. Their 9,000B/month salary is probably the tip of the iceberg. Little pity here.

I now always stuff any cash into my pants pockets where it stays during the entire security process. If they insist on pilfering that, they'll have to beat it out of me.

Any other valuables in my carry-on bags are immediately checked by Yours Truly right at the table adjacent to the x-ray machine. Sure, it holds up the process, but I read the news.

And never, never does hardly anything but dirty clothes get checked in!
Hopefully makes everyone else's bags lower-hanging fruit.

Sent from my iPhone using Thaivisa Connect

[Kasset Tak]

2 minutes ago, robblok said:

Obviously people choose BKK otherwise there would not be so many traffic jams during Songkran.

 

What you are saying about listinging to birds and going to a river are nice things that I do enjoy but would get bored of in a couple of months. I rather go from BKK to a place like that for a short holiday and then back to all the other things. I have not seen 300 Baht Mo Katha.. but seen 100 bt Mo Katha. The traffic jams are bad.. but that is why i got a bike and car. I don't get charged more then Thais for foods and got countless of choices to eat from in the malls.

 

Its true its easier here to find a girl if you so want too then in a village, and can be a good reason to stay in BKK but I would say if you are here for the ladies, Pattaya would beat BKK. I came from a small village back in the Netherlands and prefer BKK especially because everything that a foreigner wants can be bought there. I love this country and BKK is nice and central and can be used to go on trips.

 

But again.. not judging you.. you like where you stay and I like where I stay. 

 

Anyway we are totally OT, but I really see why people would want to be in BKK opposed to the small villages.

Yea, we are all different and like different things!

And you are right that many people want to BKK and for the Thai it's for the hope of easy money and you can also see the BKK centralization in Thai education too, not because of the schools/universities but because of the education students want. Thailand need people in both farming and in the industries but most students (and their parents) wants to study in the universities and not get a vocational education, this is so that they can get easier jobs that pay more but it don't work out well all of the time. 2 years ago about there were more than 10,000 more new teachers graduating from the Unis than there were teachers retiring, in the same time only Mitsubishi (electronics) and Toshiba were missing about 10,000 qualified workers... One of my old students had graduated with a BA about Flight crew (?!) and was happy that she got a 300 Baht/day job at Toshiba just 6 months after she had graduate. Now 2 years later she has finally got a trainee (ground) job for Air Asia.

[Lannig]

9000B/month a pitance? I don't know where you people are living but where I am upcountry, I know quite a few people, farmhands and others, who work hard for significantly less than this. They would certainly be very happy to make 9K.

[mtls2005]

Yes, it's 9,000 a month, and all the stuff you can steal.

[johng]

7 minutes ago, Lannig said:

9000B/month a pitance?

Yes 9000 baht per month is 300 baht per day (a pittance) from that they have to pay for their food,accommodation,transport,social security payments,send home to parents and kids etc etc   a lot don't get paid overtime or paid days off either.

Its amazing how hard some of the builders and farm workers ( and others ) have to work for that pittance..I don't think most of us here and certainly not me would  want or be physically able to do that work for even a week let alone month after month year after year.

 

 

[kkerry]

23 minutes ago, Lannig said:

9000B/month a pitance? I don't know where you people are living but where I am upcountry, I know quite a few people, farmhands and others, who work hard for significantly less than this. They would certainly be very happy to make 9K.

Would they also be happy paying the costs associated with living in Bangkok?

[Lannig]

2 minutes ago, kkerry said:

Would they also be happy paying the costs associated with living in Bangkok?

Probably not, but a poster called 9K "a pitance" even for farmhands earlier in this thread, so I doubt that he was living in BKK.

[hansnl]

1 hour ago, robblok said:

That increase has been done a long time ago.. the wage is now 300 bt a day minimum. But after that jump everything increased in price and people did not win that much because everyone wanted more money.. hence everything became more expensive.. you cant just increase only the lowest.. everyone else will want an increase too.. and without increased  productivity nobody wins because everything gets more expensive.

The first price increase came when the government said it would raise the minimum wage.

And the the second price increase came when the minimum wage was raised.

The first price increase obliterated the wage raise already.

[wump]

You guys ever wondered where your 700 Baht departure tax goes? That's almost 20 euros, nearly as much as some European airports. Obviously doesn't go to these baggage guys.

[IAMHERE]

Luggage handler must be the lowest skilled work after sidewalk sweeping. How much should you get paid for an abosolutely no skill labor. Do they even have to read?