Help for white collar workers sought

Last updated on May 13th, 2021 at 05:51 am

The Thai Chamber of Commerce is calling on the government to come up with urgent measures to help “salarymen” after many companies initiated 15-day leave programmes without pay.

The group is also asking for cooperation from its members that are struggling from the adverse impact of the coronavirus outbreak to retain their more than 10 million employees as long as possible. A source from the chamber who requested anonymity said the government should come up with clear measures to take care of salaried workers during the outbreak to prevent any impact on their income. “The Labour Protection Act largely covers daily wage workers, and the law stipulates that in the event employers want to put their workers on leave for 15 days, they have to seek prior permission from the Labour Protection and Welfare Department and continue paying 75% of their wages during the leave period,” the source said.

Visit Limlurcha, president of the Thai Food Processors Association, said the government should also rev up efforts to provide measures to help operators or businesses without sufficient working capital through low-interest or no-interest loans so they are capable of continuing to employ workers. He also called on the government to speed up developing and upgrading delivery and logistic services, particularly for hard-hit restaurants and food providers as people opt to stay home to reduce their chances of catching the coronavirus. In a related development, Thanavath Phonvichai, president of the University of the Thai Chamber of Commerce, said Thailand is estimated to lose about 240 billion baht a month or 8 billion baht per day if the government decides to lock down the country to curb the spread of the virus. The losses will stem largely from cross-border tourists and border trade, he said.