1st September 2011, 43 years after Thailand signed the International Labour Organisation’s Convention (C-19) on the Equality of Treatment (Accident Compensation), the General Secretary of Thailand’s State Enterprise Workers Relations Confederation (SERC) submits a petition to the ILO pertaining to the failure of the Royal Thai Government to impose nondiscriminatory practice on migrant workers’ access to Workmen’s compensation Fund (WCF). The RTG proposed the “private insurance scheme” for migrant workers instead of providing access the WCF.

Today (21st September), Mr. Sawit Kaewwan, General Secretary of SERC, has submitted to the ILO Committee of Experts in Geneva, Switzerland, a letter detailing Thailand’s breach of international law as evidenced by the Thai Government’s policy to deny migrant workers access to the Workmen’s Compensation Fund. This submission is an additional submission to SERC’s previous submission during international labour conference in Geneva on 13th June 2011.

The submission today aim to update the ILO committee of expert on Thailand’s continue systematic discrimination through its new established “PRIVATE INSURANCE SCHEME FOR MIGRANT WORKERS” another policy introduced to deny migrant workers access to the Workmen’s Compensation Fund, hosted under the Social Security Office. Although Ministry of Labour has issue ministerial regulation as “notification” to employers to purchase insurance which cost 500 baht from private insurance company for their migrant employees to cover in case of work accident as substitute to government managed workmen compensation fund. However, such notification has no legal binding and the government has no legal authority to enforce such duty against employer, unlike workmen compensation law which empower official to enforce the law and impose sanction against employer who do not pay to the workmen compensation fund. Therefore the private insurance scheme is base on voluntary basis and provides no guarantee for work accident compensation.

The new policy renders Thailand’s failure to protect the rights of migrant workers in Thailand. Most of all, such policy has a severe negative impact on an estimated 2 million migrants, mostly from Myanmar, currently working in Thailand.  These workers remain at high risk of suffering work-related injuries and illnesses without adequate protections. Despite previous protests to the Government of Thailand by the ILO and the United Nations, Thai government policies currently in place continue to systematically discriminate against migrant workers from Myanmar as well as allow for gross violations of human rights and abuses.

In a previous petition to the Thai Government from the ILO’s Committee of Experts and the United Nations Special Rapporteurs on Migrants, the Thai Government was urged to review the specific policy, Circular RS 0711/W751, currently denying access to immigrant workers to the Workmen’s Compensation Fund.  In response, the Ministry of Labour is requesting that the Cabinet approve the creation of a separate, private insurance system to protect migrant workers and victims or work-related accidents; a fund separate from the Workmen’s Compensation Fund. Under the current policies, migrant workers in Thailand are completely unprotected and vulnerable to abusive and discriminatory practices. Employers cannot be trusted to provide remedies themselves as in many cases reported to SERC, employers evade liabilities or ask police to arrest migrant workers, specifically victims of work-related accidents. A private insurance system which provides separate coverage with fewer benefits to migrant workers than their Thai counterparts is unacceptable and discriminatory in nature. All workers in Thailand, regardless of origin or nationality, must be entitled to the same labour rights and protection under the Workmen’s Compensation Fund. 

SERC calls on the ILO and the international community to consider and support this petition and to act swiftly so Thailand can become a safe place for workers with equal rights and protections afforded to all workers.