BangkokPost-Oct 1
Myanmar refugees living in nine border camps will be allowed to work legally in Thailand for the next 12 months Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul said on Wednesday, sending a message to Cambodia that Thailand does not need its recalled workforce. The prime minister said that from Oct 1 Myanmar refugees were allowed to work outside their camps for one year. In allowing this, Thailand complied with humanitarian principles and opened opportunities for refugees who obeyed regulations and laws and could be helpful, he said. “For those who disagree with our regulations and conditions, these regulations cannot be eased. This is sending a message to the country that has problems with us that it cannot assume we will be short of labor or workers,” Mr Anutin said, in a clear reference to Cambodia. He gave an assurance that employers would provide working Myanmar refugees with standard welfare and access to provident funds in accordance with labor laws. “These workers will be protected because they are legitimate workers,” the prime minister said. The permission to work applies to Myanmar nationals in nine refugee camps in four provinces. They can work in 43 provinces in the North, the Central Plains and the East, he said. There are 42,601 registered refugees of working age. The border conflict with Cambodia led to the exodus of hundreds of thousands of Cambodian workers. It was reported they were pressured by their homeland to return or lose their property in Cambodia. Although the border remains closed, many Cambodians have tried to sneak back into Thailand in search of work. Read more at: https://www.bangkokpost.com/thailand/general/3113985/myanmar-refugees-now-allowed-to-work-in-thailand?tbref=hp
