TCC Urge Government Promote to Set Skill-Base Standard Wage.
26-7-2019—Today The Thai Chamber of Commerce and Board of Trade of Thailand made a statement to propose the suggestion to government on “Wage Rate” issues.
Dr.Potch AramWattana Vice President Board of Trade of Thailand and Chairman of The Committee on Labor Strategy and Labor Skill Development said thanks government for proposing the urgent policy on labor issue to Lift up potential of labor and to raise up the first employment rate and the mechanism to adjust the employment rate, in line with the labor efficiency and labor skill development through Tri Party Committee, to enhance labor efficiency and control goods price not to effect cost of living and able to motivate labor self-improvement, to adjust their skill and change the carrier to match the labor market demand in the targeting industries and technologies in progress.
Especially the “First Employment Rate” which are the same as what TCC and Board if Trade has been proposed since 2017 to avoid the long term effect to Thailand’s economic from minimum wage annually adjusted in the past, which are the urgent issue which government had made the policy statement on 25 July 2019. The policy will bring the positive result to competitiveness of the country, including stimulating labor productivity and labor skill development and also promoting
Better quality of life of labor and people.
Before government making policy statement, the current news continue report about the nationwide minimum wage will be raised to 400-425 baht/day which brought about confusion
and worried to all sector that employing labor, especially SMEs, Farming sector, Service Sector and Tourism sector, including people in general that worried about higher cost of living. Then, all party reflexed disagreement and question on the appropriation and the righteousness of how come the minimum rate.
TCC and Board of Trade of Thailand then made a questionnaire to1,355 sampling cover all 76 provinces nationwide and found that 93.9 % disagree with the policy to raise the minimum wage to 400 baht/day as the current news reported.
TCC and Board of Trade of Thailand, then would like to propose the suggestion t o government regarding the labor wage as follow;
1) The wage adjustment must follow Article 87 of The lbor protection Act B.E.2541 (1998)
through the consideration of Provincial Minimum Wage Consideration Sub Committee and Tri Parties Wage Committee which member of the both committee should be truly from selecting process and should be liberal organization that can conduct the consideration according to the rule.
In addition TCC and Board of Trade request government to revise and amend the related law, in order to have TCC and Board of Trade of Thailand to join in Tri Parties Wage Committee.
2) Government should have study all dimension effect before announcing the rising minimum wage, unless it will effect Thailand competitiveness and National’s 20 Years 2 Years Strategic Plan, as now Thailand’s minimum wage is highest among ASEAN’s neighboring countries.
3) Promptly adjust the over the realistic minimum wage will be negative effect to Thailand economic and investment, bring about unconfident to Thai and foreign investor, while now there are remain several others fluctuated factors such as; baht currency and trade war to various countries.
4) Promptly adjust the wage rate over the reality will effect over all system hiring wage and will make higher cost of production, especially in farming sector, service sector, tourism sector and SMEs enterprises covering over 3 million cases which in 2017 had create 6.5 trillion baht value or 42.4% of GDP of the whole nation (according to Office of SMEs Promotion), while it also effect to original labor, including monthly employers, public servants, including various rank of state employers.
5) Adjusting wage rate over economic and social real basic condition will effect national economic, especially higher inflation that will resulting speedy higher price of goods and will make people facing higher cost of living.
6) Adjusting labor wage should consider labor skill and suggest Labor Ministry urgently promote to set more industry’s standard labor wage from existing 241 industries that had set the standard labor wage according to Labor Skill Development Committee’s Announcement.
7) Government should urgently enforce to use “The First Employment Rate” in the next wage rate announcement promptly, instead of “Minimum Wage”, according to the urgent policy on Labor Potential Level Lifting and should set up the clear definition of “The First Employment Rate”
8) Government should promote providing training and incentive measures for business operators and labor by focusing on Up-Skill, Re-Skill and New-Skill, in order to create
The skilled labor that match to the demand of labor market and enhance labor efficiency, aiming to adjust the wage according to the salary cylinder.
