Observation (CEACR) - adopted 2015, published 105th ILC session (2016)

Employment Service Convention, 1948 (No. 88) - Thailand (Ratification: 1969)

Article 6(b)(iv) of the Convention. Migrant workers. The Government indicates in its report that, as of April 2014, a total of 205 companies applied for a recruitment service licence for both domestic and foreign workers and 198 of them had received it. The Committee notes that through the Memorandum of Understanding on Employment Cooperation, signed by Thailand, Cambodia, Lao People’s Democratic Republic and Myanmar, employers requested nearly 1,025,000 migrant workers during the period of 2005–14 and over 503,000 migrant workers from the signatory countries were granted permission to work in Thailand. It also notes that the National Council for Peace and Order (NCPO) issued an announcement No. 70/2557 on 25 June 2014 on interim measures in solving the problems of migrant workers and human trafficking, which set up the One-Stop Service (OSS) Centres in order to protect migrant workers. By October 2014, approximately 316,000 employers submitted requests to employ migrant workers and about 1,534,000 migrant workers were registered with the OSS Centres. Migrant workers registered with the OSS Centres will be requested to undertake the nationality verification process. The Government indicates that, during the 2010–13 period, close to 1,825,000 migrant workers received the national verification which legalizes the employment status of migrant workers, including roughly 1,630,000 workers from Myanmar, 154,000 from Cambodia and 41,000 from Lao People’s Democratic Republic. Referring to its observation on the application of the Employment Policy Convention, 1964 (No. 122), on this matter, the Committee requests the Government to provide information on the impact of the measures taken by the public employment service to prevent abuse in the recruitment of labour and the exploitation of migrant workers in Thailand as well as to facilitate their movement across borders, with due regard to their fundamental rights.

Article 11. Effective cooperation between the public employment service and private employment agencies. The Government indicates that licensed recruitment agencies may select jobseekers from a list provided in the registration centres of the Department of Employment based on the regulation issued by the same Department. It also indicates that the Department of Employment appointed representatives from private employment agencies to participate as members in the Committee on the development of the recruitment and protection of jobseekers. In 2012–13, the Department of Employment cooperated with private employment agencies in measures to reduce the service charge fees and other expenses borne by jobseekers, particularly by rendering 95 private employment agencies to participate in a campaign to reduce service charge fees and expenses of Thai workers in Taiwan. The Committee requests the Government to provide information on the manner in which the private employment agencies participate in the activities of the Committee on the development of the recruitment and protection of jobseekers, as well as on the measures taken to secure effective cooperation between the public employment service and private employment agencies.

Application of the Convention in practice. The Committee notes that between October 2013 and September 2014, about 1,039,000 job applicants, 443,870 job vacancies and 372,000 job placements were registered in 87 government employment offices. Moreover, about 119,000 workers were employed overseas during the same period, including through the Department of Employment (10,097 persons) and private recruitment agencies (34,846 persons). The Committee requests the Government to continue to provide statistical information on the number of public employment offices established, the number of applications for employment received, the number of vacancies notified and the number of persons placed in employment by such offices.