Minimum wage increases
pressed for
on Thailand's Labour Day
By Jon Fernquest
Higher food and oil prices this year have
increased the cost of living for everyone in
Thailand.
Labour leaders have been pressing for a nationwide nine baht increase in minimum wages starting on May 1st. This is in line with the 5-10% increase necessary to keep pace with expected inflation of 4% this year. This would increase labour costs which account for about 30% of production costs across all industries in Thailand.
May 1st has long been a special day for workers around the world, known as May Day, International Workers Day, and in Thailand as the public holiday National Labour Day. Protests and marches by workers all over the world demanding higher wages and better working conditions occur regularly on May Day. This May Day 5,000 members of seven labour unions in Thailand will rally in front of Government House where the Prime Minister lives and present him with a petition demanding that he act quickly on minimum wages.
Currently labourers in Bangkok and five neighbouring provinces (Samut Prakan, Samut Sakhon, Pathum Thani, Nakhon Phanom, Nonthaburi) receive the highest minimum wage of 195 baht per day. Provinces outside of the Bangkok area have lower minimum wages because the cost of living is lower. The provinces of Phayao and Nan have the lowest minimum wage of 144 baht per day.
A meeting of the Central Wage Committee was scheduled for Monday but the meeting could not convene because only one employer representative showed up, below the legal requirement of two representatives needed to convene a meeting. The Central Wage Committee consists of representatives from employers, the government, and the workers and is chaired by the labour permanent secretary.
The boycott of this important meeting angered labour leaders. The four employer representatives claimed that they were on business trips abroad.
Some employers have already taken action on their own. The Bangkok Metropolitan Administration has already raised the living cost subsidy for BMA employees with salaries under 13,500 per month by 2,000 per month.
Inflation's greater impact on low wage earners
Low wage earners suffer more from these price increases in basic necessities because a higher percentage of their income is spent on these necessities. For example, someone earning the minimum wage in Bangkok of 195 baht per day, earns about 4,000 baht per month. Three meals a day at 20 baht per meal gives monthly food expenses of around 1800 per month. If inflation in food prices pushes the cost of a meal up to 30 baht, the monthly food budget jumps to 2700 per month. This increase of 900 baht per month creates a lot more hardship for a 4,000 wage earner than for a salaried employee earning 20,000 per month.
(Source #1: Bangkok Post, general news, page 3, Penchan Charoensuthipan, temp-link)
(Source #2: Bangkok Post, business section, page B1, Phusadee Arunmas, temp-link)
Vocabulary:
cost of living
- the amount of money spent on things necessary for everyday life such
as food, transportation, clothing, and shelter ค่าครองชีพ
a wage - an amount of money regularly paid to a
worker for the work they do (per hour, per day) ค่าแรง
basic necessities - things that a person must have
to live properly (food, clothes, shelter, transportation to and from
work) ความจำเป็นขั้นพื้นฐาน
a pay rate
- the amount of money that a worker receives per hour or per day
อัตราค่าจ้าง / ค่าแรง
a minimum wage - the lowest pay rate that a company
can legally pay workers, legally set by the governent to ensure that
people can look after their families, economists claim that minimum
wages can create unemployment (See Economist
glossary) ค่าแรงขั้นต่ำ
expenses
- money spent to buy things ค่าใช้จ่าย
inflation - the rate of increase in the general
price level of all goods in the economy (See Economist
glossary) เงินเฟ้อ
pressing for
- demanding, trying to get ที่เป็นที่ต้่องการ
in line with - agreeing with, consistent with
สอดคล้องกับ
keep pace with - go at the same speed as
May Day
- May 1st, a public holiday in many countries, an ancient holday that
falls halfway between a solstice
and an equinox
(See Wikipedia)
วันหยุดครึ่งปี
International Labour Day - the annual day of
celebration and protest for the international labour movement, a modern
holiday (See Wikipedia)
วันแรงงาน
a public holiday
- a day on which the government says people don't have to work
วันหยุดราชการ
working conditions - the situation in the work place
and how it affects workers (safety, comfort, hours, fair
treatment)
a rally - a large public meeting held to show
support for something การเดินประท้วง
a petition - a document signed by many people asking
the government to do something คำร้องเรียน
the Central Wage Committee, the Tripartite Wage Committee
- the government committee that sets the minimum wage
คณะกรรมของกรมแรงงาน
convene a meeting - actually have the meeting (a
certain minimum number of people is usually required before a meeting
can be started) จัดประชุมร่วม
permanent secretary - not appointed by an elected
official, a person who has worked for the government for his or her
whole career, a high ranking civil servant เลขาธิการถาวร
a boycott - refuse to buy the goods or participate
in an activity, as a protest against a company, organisation, or even a
whole country คว่ำบาตร
the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration - the name
of the local government for the city of Bangkok กรุงเทพมหานคร
(สำนักงานบริหารกรุงเทพมหานคร)
a subsidy - part of the cost paid by the government
to help and encourage something ค่าชดเชย