Minister voices concern about workers living in Thailand
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Many of the 3 million Myanmar migrant workers in Thailand are suffering from low wages and unsafe working environments, Myanmar's deputy labour minister said.
Htin Aung, Deputy Minister for Labour, Employment and Social Security, spoke at a workshop on the development of Myanmar’s labour force on August 1.
“Most of Myanmar migrants working in Thailand are unskilled workers. They are suffering low wages and dangerous working environments,” said Htin Aung.
“Therefore, we need to provide skill training to the people who want to work abroad,” he noted.
Despite the low wages, there is an increased number of people who are leaving Myanmar for Thailand to work there. According to the federation of overseas employment agencies, about 5,000 workers a month are now going to Thailand in search of jobs.
This is nearly double when it is compared to the past years’ figure of around 3,000 workers per month leaving for Thailand.
Thailand’s government earlier set the minimum wage level for migrant workers at Bt300 per day. The law is obeyed in big cities but those working in border areas are still earning around Bt200 per day, the federation said.
Undocumented migrant workers are another concern for the two governments. According to Myanmar’s Ministry of Labour, Employment and Social Security, 1.6 million Myanmar migrant workers out of 3 million have been given temporary passports.
In fact, the largest number of Myanmar migrant workers is located in neighbouring Thailand, the official reports said.
