ID :
193213
Wed, 07/06/2011 - 12:04
Auther :
Shortlink :
http://m.oananews.org//node/193213
The shortlink copeid
Minimum wage rise in Thailand to help grassroots people
BANGKOK, July 6 (TNA) - The Pheu Thai Party has affirmed that its plan to raise the minimum wage to 300 baht a day is aimed at helping grassroots people.
Pheu Thai Secretary General Jarupong Ruangsuwan, also a former permanent secretary to the Thai Labour Ministry, made the counter remarks Wednesday in response to public criticisms against the implementation of the 300-baht minimum wage policy.
Jarupong argued that the plan was aimed at stimulating Thailand’s economy and enabling the poor to live a better life. He noted that according to the International Labour Organization’s statement, wages must be sufficient for family living.
Under the concept, he explained, cheap wages would no longer exist in Thailand and the government would improve workers’ skills and promote high-value products in line with its national development strategy, set to be implemented until 2020.
Jarupong disclosed that the new government would start by increasing the minimum salary of civil servants, including state enterprise workers, to 15,000 baht this October. This would involve building awareness for the private sector on the needs of a wage hike, including of benefits such as the reduction in corporate income tax, machinery tariffs, as well as export promotion. The wage hike would expectedly take full effect by January next year.
Regarding concerns that a wage increase would prompt a relocation of production bases, the Pheu Thai official said the new government would facilitate relocation for labour-intensive industries to the foreign countries with cheap labour, including border areas. (TNA)
Pheu Thai Secretary General Jarupong Ruangsuwan, also a former permanent secretary to the Thai Labour Ministry, made the counter remarks Wednesday in response to public criticisms against the implementation of the 300-baht minimum wage policy.
Jarupong argued that the plan was aimed at stimulating Thailand’s economy and enabling the poor to live a better life. He noted that according to the International Labour Organization’s statement, wages must be sufficient for family living.
Under the concept, he explained, cheap wages would no longer exist in Thailand and the government would improve workers’ skills and promote high-value products in line with its national development strategy, set to be implemented until 2020.
Jarupong disclosed that the new government would start by increasing the minimum salary of civil servants, including state enterprise workers, to 15,000 baht this October. This would involve building awareness for the private sector on the needs of a wage hike, including of benefits such as the reduction in corporate income tax, machinery tariffs, as well as export promotion. The wage hike would expectedly take full effect by January next year.
Regarding concerns that a wage increase would prompt a relocation of production bases, the Pheu Thai official said the new government would facilitate relocation for labour-intensive industries to the foreign countries with cheap labour, including border areas. (TNA)
