400-baht minimum wage still on track for this year, says Paetongtarn
Thai premier says her government will push for the new daily wage rate for unskilled workers to be implemented this year despite delays and opposition
Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra said her government will push for the implementation of a 400-baht minimum daily wage for unskilled workers nationwide within this year.
She was speaking to reporters before chairing the weekly Cabinet meeting in Government House on Tuesday. They had asked her to comment on the tripartite Wage Committee chairman’s statement that the 400-baht rate cannot be endorsed in time for implementation on October 1.
On Monday, Pairoj Chotikasathien, permanent secretary at the Labour Ministry and ex-officio chairman of the wage committee, said the panel could not hold a meeting as scheduled on Tuesday to endorse the 400-baht wage because the panel lacked a quorum of 15 members.
He explained that the Bank of Thailand (BOT) representative had been disqualified and the panel would have to wait for his replacement to arrive.
When asked if the 400-baht daily wage will kick-off on October 1 as promised by the government, Paetongtarn said: “A meeting needs to be held first.”
When asked if the 400-baht rate will be implemented within this year, she nodded and said: “It should be so.”
Increasing the daily minimum wage to 400 baht nationwide was among the flagship election campaign policies of the ruling Pheu Thai Party.
In her capacity as Pheu Thai leader, Paetongtarn announced in December 2022 that the party’s aim was to raise the minimum wage to about 600 baht nationwide by 2027.
The party announced in May this year that the wage will be raised to 400 baht across the country on October 1 as the first step towards the 600-baht by 2027 goal.
The promise drew strong opposition from employers’ groups, who want the rate to be varied around the country, depending on the economic situation and performance of businesses.
