| 29 Apr 11 | Group quits PAD for its coup stance -- The State Enterprise Labour Relations Confederation is defecting from the movement led by the People's Alliance for Democracy because PAD leaders have said they support undemocratic political change, the confederation's secretary-general says. ( Bangkokpost ) |
| 26 Apr 11 | German IGBCE’s Training with Thai Union Ends in New Linde CBA -- The Thai Industrial Gases Labour Union (TIGLU), part of ICEM affiliate Petroleum and Chemicals Workers’ Federation of Thailand (PCFT), benefited from a two-day training course presented by the German union, IGBCE, in Saraburi province, Thailand. The union achieved a new collective agreement with Linde at 13 Thai worksites immediately after, indicating the success of the workshop. ( Laborstart ) |
| 26 Apr 11 | Activists back health services -- Labour activists are urging the government to ensure alien workers' rights and access to health services rather than focusing solely on their registration. ( Bangkokpost ) |
| 25 Apr 11 | Labour chief wants better SSF scheme -- A labour leader has come out against plans to let the National Health Security Office handle the medical bills of Social Security Fund subscribers, saying what private sector workers want is an improved healthcare scheme from the fund. ( Bangkokpost ) |
| 22 Apr 11 | US agency to indict after Thai workers suffer abuse -- A US federal agency has filed lawsuits claiming Thai workers were physically abused and forced to live in rat-infested housing after being recruited by a California-based labour contractor to work on farms in Hawaii and Washington. ( Bangkokpost ) |
| 22 Apr 11 | ACTIVISTS CONDEMN 'ABSURD' PUBLIC ASSEMBLY BILL -- "Those who want to express themselves won't be able to. They will be suppressed," said Wichai Narapiboon, labour activist and manager of the Thai Labour Museum. "It's the smaller groups of protesters who will be affected." Wichai reckoned that even if the bill was passed, many trade unionists and farmers would likely have no alternative but to break the law and protest if they were desperate - although such a law would further penalise the already marginalised group. Wichai said he thought red shirts as well as yellow shirts would continue to defy the law as long as they could muster enough protesters. "When 30,000 people come out on the street, can you deal with it besides using bullets?" he asked. "Such a law is absurd." ( The Nation ) |
| 21 Apr 11 | Rail projects are 10,000 workers short -- Mass transit contractors have made a desperate appeal to labour authorities to hire 10,000 immigrant workers to complete the 236km electric railway system in greater Bangkok. ( Bangkokpost ) |
| 20 Apr 11 | Ministry looks to restructure worker wages -- The Labour Ministry is proposing a revamp of the wage structure, basing it on workers' skill levels in 11 types of jobs, to pave the way for the Democrat-led government's policy to raise the minimum wage by 25% in two years. ( Bangkokpost ) |
| 20 Apr 11 | 60 Burmese freed in factory raid -- The suspects - identified as Darong Wu, 50, and his wife Namee Li, 26 - were detained on suspicion of human-trafficking and labour-law violations. Police claim a worker had tipped them off. ( The Nation ) |
| 19 Apr 11 | ID holders to be given free access to govt hospitals -- " We will come up with a resolution next week that allows SSS subscribers to use only an ID card to receive medical services at health care units under the Public Health Ministry, " Jurin said yesterday. ( The Nation ) |
| 18 Apr 11 | Life looks rosier for Charlie -- Life is looking up for Burmese migrant worker Charlie Tiyu. Charlie, who suffered a serious work accident in Pathum Thani on Jan 9, is now on the mend after undergoing a series of operations. ( Bangkokpost ) |
| 08 Apr 11 | Merger of SSO and NHSO questioned -- Pan Wannapinit also questioned the Article's third paragraph, which requires that the SSO Fund be handed over to the NHSO. The fund is built from contributions from SSO subscribers, so why should the NHSO get it, he asked. He added that moving the money over would violate the Social Security Act, which says that the fund should cover subscribers' medical expenses and pay for administration of the SSO. ( The Nation ) |
| 08 Apr 11 | PM backs Bt250 wage -- At a seminar with representative of employers and labour leaders, he said skills training and quality improvement were needed to make the rise reasonable for employers and consumers. The government is balancing two approaches to industry, between giving workers more income and making industry thrive with higher profits while carrying more costs, he said. ( The Nation ) |
| 04 Apr 11 | Wage rises and costs driving garment industry to set up shop out of Thailand -- The populist government policy to increase minimum wages to Bt250 per day within two years will directly hit labour-intensive industries, particularly the garment industry, forcing manufacturers to build plants outside the Kingdom to maintain competitiveness. ( The Nation ) |
| 01 Apr 11 | Talks coming on more minimum-wage rises -- According to Democrat Party spokesman Buranat Samutarak, raising minimum wages is one of two major policies for the upcoming election to help the poor cope with the increasing cost of living. On the other hand, farmers' income will also be raised by the same amount. "We will launch the policies soon through TV commercials and radio spots until the election takes place," he said. ( The Nation ) |
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