On September 8, 2021, Labour Minister Mr. Suchart Chomklin assigned his Secretariat, Mr. Suthep Chitvong, chaired the discussion with representatives of the educational institutions and the Occupational Health and Safety Professional Network led by Dr. Densak Yokyeon, a professor at Mahidol University, together with representatives of teachers and students from Thammasat University and other institutions that have filed complaints against the provision of training courses for professional safety officers. Advisory Board Member to the Minister of Labour, Mr. Natthawat Teeratathamrong, Deputy Director-General of the Department of Labour Protection and Welfare, Mr. Wannarat Srisuksai, and the Ministry of Labour’s senior executives also participated in this occasion at the Labour Relations Committee meeting room, 1st floor, Ministry of Labour. Mr. Suthep said that due to the COVID-19 situation, the Prime Minister and Minister of Defense General Prayuth Chan-ocha and Deputy Prime Minister General Prawit Wongsuwan, who oversees the Ministry of Labour, are concerned for all worker groups and has instructed Labour Minister Mr. Suchart Chomklin to closely monitor the situation. Today, he met with representatives from the Educational Institutions and the Occupational Health and Safety Professional Network. They submitted a complaint to object to the training course for safety officers at work following the laws prescribed by the Department of Labour Protection and Welfare.
Mr. Suthep continued that from today’s discussions, both parties agreed to establish a working group between the Ministry of Labour’s Department of Employment, the Department of Labour Protection and Welfare, educational institutions that teach courses on occupational safety, health and working environment, professional councils, workplaces, and related agencies to discuss and exchange information on job matching for newly graduated students in the occupational safety, health and work environment courses within workplaces that require safety officers. Currently, there are 48 educational institutions nationwide that offer courses on occupational safety, health, and working environment. Overall, establishments require over 3,000 safety staff working at the professional level. The Ministry of Labour will establish a working group to discuss in detail and take further action on the relevant part.
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Division of Public Relations
8 September 2021
