Minimum wage hike may not be made compulsory – Deputy PM

20 Aug '11

1 min read

Thailand's Deputy Prime Minister Kittiratt Na-Ranong has stated that it may not be made compulsory for private businesses to hike the daily minimum wage to 300 baht. The Government's decision on raising the minimum wage is believed to greatly impact over 10 industries including textile, agriculture, garment, and shoe industries.

The Deputy PM added that the Government has to speed up the work of finalising the measures to aid the private sector to curtail production costs in the form of reduction in corporate income taxes and interest rates as well as by developing human resources.

He, however, said that the Government would lead the drive by increasing wages of workers associated with state-owned organizations and projects.

Mr. Kittiratt, together with Finance Minister Thirachai Phuvanatnaranubala and Labour Minister Padermchai Sasomsap, held discussions with the Joint Standing Committee on Commerce, Industry and Banking over the issue.

Meanwhile, the Federation of Thai Industries (FTI) has expressed optimism that the Government, while not implementing the measure at a single stroke would hike the minimum wage to 300 baht over a period of three years.

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