Shortage of workers in Pattaya

With a minimum wage of about 360 baht and they wonder why they have worker shortage?

From Pattaya Mail

By Barry Kenyon

Although Thailand currently has 2.7 million registered guest workers from neighboring countries, some regions are still massively short of the numbers required. Jessataporn Bunnag, director of the Pattaya-based Foreign Workers Employment Agency, said there are over 250,000 registered guest workers in Chonburi province, but employers and contractors were asking for many more. The agency is responsible for the registration of foreign workers from Myanmar, Cambodia and Laos in accordance with the memoranda of understanding between Thailand and the governments of the respective countries.

“Chonburi province is very diverse,” said Mr Bunnag, “So there are vacancies in tourist-orientated Pattaya for hotel and restaurant staff as well as laborers on building sites. But the pressing need in Chonburi city is for factory workers in food processing and in port areas for fishermen. Not to mention the diverse needs of the hi-tech Eastern Economic Corridor.” He added that the situation could get worse in future because of the steep fall in Thailand’s birth rate over the past 30 years. He suggested that the Thai government should look at raising the minimum wage (currently around 360 baht in Chonburi province) and recruiting workers from Vietnam by establishing a further memorandum of understanding with the authorities there.