Wage hike must match productivity: UTCC
Raising the minimum daily wage based on the level of skills and productivity in parallel with economic stimulus measures and lower utility costs will boost consumers' purchasing power.
According to the director of the University of the Thai Chamber of Commerce's International Trade Studies Centre, Associate Professor Att Pisarnvanich, the wage adjustment proposed by the Move Forward Party, which raises the daily minimum to 450 baht, should be divided into three levels as follows:
Level 1: For farmers, the wage should increase to 400 baht per day.
Level 2: For industrial workers, the wage should increase to 425 baht per day.
Level 3: For service sector businesses such as information technology, finance, entertainment, and construction, the wage should increase to 450 baht per day, depending on the worker's level of skill.
The government also needs to simultaneously implement measures to stimulate the economy by increasing spending and reducing production costs, such as water and electricity, following the minimum daily wage hike.
At the same time, there is a need to expedite the shift of the manufacturing sector towards industries that focus on innovation, creativity, research and development, advanced technologies and green technologies (the so-called Thailand 4.0) to create value-added in products and provide easier access to loans for SMEs seeking funding.
