Myanmar migrant workers in Thailand use Labour Day to press demands

By Admin 01 May 2023

DMG Newsroom
1 May 2023, Sittwe

A group of Myanmar migrant workers in Thailand brought a set of three requests to the Thai government on May 1, International Workers’ Day.

On the migrant workers’ list was a request that visa extensions be enabled in Thailand, without visa holders having to return to Myanmar; that a worker’s wages be sufficient to support three family members; and that migrant workers be allowed to form their own associations and make collective demands.

About 2,000 Myanmar migrant workers in Thailand made their entreaty in front of the Thai government ministries office in Bangkok on Monday.

“If the visas of the workers employed under the memorandum of understanding (MoU) expire, they have to return to Myanmar to renew their visas. If we return to Myanmar now and renew our visa, there is no security guarantee for us,” said Ko Zaw, an official from the Thailand-based Migrant Workers Rights Network (MWRN). 

“That’s why we want the military junta to arrange for Myanmar migrant workers to extend their visas in Thailand,” he added. “We demand that the Thai government raise the wages of Myanmar migrant workers to be equal to Thai citizens. We also ask the Thai government to allow Myanmar migrant workers to form associations and make collective demands.”

Ko Tun Lin Khaing, a worker employed in Thailand under the MoU between the two governments, said he would like the Myanmar regime to extend visas in Thailand for MoU workers whose visas have expired, as was the case during the height of the Covid-19 pandemic.

“It is not easy for us to return to Myanmar for the time being, due to the political situation,” he explained.

Some of the Myanmar MoU workers in Thailand have also complained of being unfairly laid off. There have been concerns raised about the lack of protections and advocacy provided by employment agencies as well.