Thai economy gets added boost from overseas remittances: Labour Ministry

Phairoj Chotikasatien, the ministry’s permanent secretary, said on Tuesday that from October to December 2023, as many as 21,281 Thai nationals have registered to work overseas. Of them, 10,024 secured jobs via recruitment agencies, 7,709 were returning to old jobs, 2,015 were sent as part of government deals and 1,533 had sought jobs themselves.

Phairoj said 118,080 Thais are working overseas, of whom 92,966 are men and 25,114 women.

The top 10 countries or territories where Thai workers are most prevalent are:

1. Taiwan (51,960)

2. South Korea (20,150)

3. Israel (14,593)

4. Japan (8,716)

5. Malaysia (4,901)

6. Singapore (3,194)

7. Hong Kong (1,528)

8. Hungary (1,140)

9. United States (1,041)

10. United Arab Emirates (1,002)

Thai workers overseas mostly work in the sectors of agriculture and farming, industry, steel production, construction, electronics manufacturing and massage.

Phairoj said the ministry plans to expand the market for Thai workers overseas by another 100,000 positions within this fiscal year and has instructed relevant agencies to extend help to Thais overseas, especially concerning labour welfare and protection.