The Labour Minister clarified the assistance provided to employees from three labour unions who submitted a request for a report on the progress and assistance. Solutions are being expedited to support the workers.
On September 21, 2021, Labour Minister Mr. Suchart Chomklin clarified the case of three labor unions consisting of the Triumph International Workers’ Union of Thailand, Body Fashion (Thailand) Co., Ltd., and the TOSTEM Thai Workers’ Union, who filed a request on the progress of assistance in the event that the employees were terminated. He said that Prime Minister and Minister of Defense General Prayuth Chan-ocha is concerned about the situation and has reminded the Ministry of Labour to take care of employees affected by the COVID-19 situation, who have been part of partial of complete company layoffs, minimizing the impact on employees. The Ministry of Labour has assigned Secretariat to the Labour Minister Mr. Suthep Chitvong, to supervise this matter, and for Deputy Director-General of the Department of Labour Protection and Welfare, Mr. Wannarat Srisuksai, to quickly support.
The three labor unions submitted a letter asking for progress. The Ministry of Labour has acted on various cases, such as the case of Brilliant Alliance Thai Global Co., Ltd., located in Samut Prakan Province. On March 11, 2021, the company terminated 1,388 employees due to the impact of COVID-19, whereby the end of employment was immediate. The labour inspector investigated the facts and ordered the company to pay its employees for a total of 243,537,318.67 Baht. The Department of Labour Protection and Welfare paid assistance from Employee Welfare Fund to 1,231 employees, amounting to 22,321,856 Baht, and the Social Security Office paid unemployment benefits to employees in the amount of 65,540,768 Baht. The Department of Labour Protection and Welfare filed a criminal case against the company and the authorized directors for violations or non-compliance with the law, in the case of not paying wages for annual vacations, wages in lieu of advance notice, and other compensation, and failure to comply with the labour inspector’s order. The sentence for such case is imprisonment not exceeding one year or a fine not exceeding one hundred thousand baht or both. The case was presented to the Bang Sao Thong District Police Station, resulting in court proceedings. An arrest warrant was issued for the authorized director on September 17, 2021. The civil prosecution has filed a lawsuit against the company to comply with the labour inspector’s order to the Labour Court Region 1 for the court to consider and mediate the case on October 18, 2021. The Ministry of Labour has assigned the Department of Employment to recruit 1,834 vacancies for the impacted employees.
Mr. Suchart continued that for the TOSTEM Thai Co., Ltd. employer, and TOSTEM Thai Workers’ Union, the Department of Labour Protection and Welfare has assigned a labour dispute conciliation staff to make an appointment for both sides to negotiate a settlement. The case is that the employer had announced to change the cancelation of the special leave due to a group at risk of contracting COVID-19 on September 22, 2021, at 10:00 hours at the Labour Protection and Welfare Office in Pathum Thani Province. It is believed that both parties will negotiate based on the principles of good labour relations and have a satisfactory outcome.
———————————-
Division of Public Relations
21 September 2021
