Migrant workers, employers warned to meet June 30 dateline

BANGKOK, June 20 (TNA) - The Thai government, through the Ministry of Labour, warns both migrant workers and their employers to complete the nationality verification and other legal requirements by the June 30-dateline, or face a decisive legal punishment. Thai Labour Minister Police General Adul Sangsingkeo voiced the warning, himself, on Wednesday, noting that the legal requirements are aimed not only to comply with the domestic law and the international principle, but also to protect the legal rights and welfare of migrant workers in the country. The minister stated that there were 24,090 migrant workers who had not yet passed the nationality verification process as of June 19, including 19,018 from Cambodia and the remaining 5,072 from Lao PDR, out of a total of 134,491 from Myanmar, Cambodia and Lao PDR. Besides, there were 51,987 migrant workers from the three neighboring countries who had not yet reported to one stop service centers (OSSCs) in the respective areas for the background screening process and the official approval of their work permits, out of a total of 360,222 who had not completed the remaining legal requirements by the end of March 2018 and had been allowed to complete the requirements within the end of this month. "The Thai Ministry of Labour will not extend the dateline again and strict inspections will be launched as of July 1, with both migrant workers and their employers found failing to meet the June 30-dateline will face decisive legal punishment", the minister insisted. According to the labour minister, migrant workers who are found failing to meet the June 30-dateline will be each fined 5,000-50,000 baht and will be sent back to their home countries and will be prohibited from applying for work permits in Thailand for two years even though they will legally seek to work in the Thai Kingdom under a memorandum of understanding (MOUs) their governments have signed with the Thai government, while employers who are found failing to meet the same dateline will be fined 10,000-100,000 per migrant worker and will face a jail term of the maximum of one year, or a higher fine of 50,000-200,000 baht or both, along with a three-year ban against hiring migrant workers if they are found to have been repeatedly against the regulation. (TNA)