ID :
173858
Thu, 04/07/2011 - 14:33
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Shortlink :
http://m.oananews.org//node/173858
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Thailand to hike minimum wages by 25% in 2 years
BANGKOK, April 7 (TNA) - Thai Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva announced on Thursday that he would increase minimum wages in Thailand by 25 per cent within two years and use tax incentives to reduce costs for local business operators.
At a seminar in Bangkok co-hosted by the Thai Ministry of Labor and the Arom Pongpangan Foundation, Abhisit said that the planned hike in minimum wages is part of a major restructuring of the Thai economy, insisting that while gradually increasing the minimum wages in each Thai province separately, he would also reduce costs for business operators through tax incentives and price controls.
Chief of the Confederation of Thai Labor Manus Kosol called for the minimum wages to rise on the Labor Day on May 1 by at least 12.5 per cent and by equal proportions in all provinces. Currently, Thailand's minimum wages are largely unequal in different provinces. In Phuket, the minimum wage is 221 baht per day, but in Payao, the minimum wage is 159 baht per day, leaving a 62-baht gap; while prices of goods and services, however, rise equally nationwide.
Meanwhile, Chairman of the Federation of Thai Industries (FTI) Payungsak Chartsutipol admitted he is worried over the rising minimum wages, as they would adversely affect local labor-intensive small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), which currently employ over 10 million workers, urging the Thai government to carefully consider impacts of the minimum wage hike on the local SMEs. (TNA)
At a seminar in Bangkok co-hosted by the Thai Ministry of Labor and the Arom Pongpangan Foundation, Abhisit said that the planned hike in minimum wages is part of a major restructuring of the Thai economy, insisting that while gradually increasing the minimum wages in each Thai province separately, he would also reduce costs for business operators through tax incentives and price controls.
Chief of the Confederation of Thai Labor Manus Kosol called for the minimum wages to rise on the Labor Day on May 1 by at least 12.5 per cent and by equal proportions in all provinces. Currently, Thailand's minimum wages are largely unequal in different provinces. In Phuket, the minimum wage is 221 baht per day, but in Payao, the minimum wage is 159 baht per day, leaving a 62-baht gap; while prices of goods and services, however, rise equally nationwide.
Meanwhile, Chairman of the Federation of Thai Industries (FTI) Payungsak Chartsutipol admitted he is worried over the rising minimum wages, as they would adversely affect local labor-intensive small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), which currently employ over 10 million workers, urging the Thai government to carefully consider impacts of the minimum wage hike on the local SMEs. (TNA)
