Labour Minister Mr. Suchart Chomklin confirmed that the Thai economy had not gone downhill to the extent that factories have laid off staff. He reported that Mitsubishi Chonburi Co., Ltd., has commenced the early retirement program, compensating up to 16-37 months, which has gained attention from employees. He pointed out that those interested are looking for a lump-sum payment or may have a personal business plan, including possibly returning to agriculture at home in the provinces, but he is not afraid of people losing their jobs.
On October 2, 2020, Labour Minister Mr. Suchart Chomklin spoke about the case of Mitsubishi Elevator Asia Co., Ltd., Chonburi Province, which farewelled leaving employees. Prime Minister General Prayuth Chan-ocha showed concern about Mitsubishi’s employees affected by this layoff and therefore urged the Ministry of Labour to investigate the facts. The investigation showed that the event was not a termination of employment, but a project for employees to voluntarily resign, providing compensation higher than the law, which is 16-37 months. As such, as many as 970 employees showed interest in applying to the program, exceeding the target limit of 686 people. Many of the employees wanted to use the lump sum compensation to change and carry out their life plans or go to other occupations instead. Therefore, the Ministry of Labour wanted to clarify that people do not receive the wrong information and become shocked that the Thai economy has slumped, and many jobs have been laid off; the facts show that this is not the case.
Mr. Suchart said that the details and origin of Mitsubishi Elevator Asia Co., Ltd. started the project for employees to voluntarily resign was because the company has 2,400 employees and needed to reduce the size of the workforce as a result from the Covid-19 pandemic effects. The voluntary resignation program was announced with a special payment equal to the legal compensation, with an extra amount beyond statutory requirements. The minimum received 16 months of compensation, and the maximum received 37 months, effective on October 1, 2020. At this point, there are 970 employees interested in applying for the program, which exceeds the company’s approved target of 686 employees. The company has paid for special assistance and additional compensation to the employees of approximately 560 million Baht.
“Such events reflect that the company still has the potential for employment. Because it offers high compensation, many employees became interested in receiving a lump sum amount and are not afraid of losing their job. This does not mean that the Thai economy is in trouble resulting in many layoffs. The Ministry of Labour has organized the JOB EXPO event, bringing together over a million jobs for new graduates and those who do not have a job to apply for work, which received a lot of attention. The Ministry of Labour has never abandoned suffering workers,” said the Labour Minister.
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Division of Public Relations
2 October 2020
