Executive Summary
for the National Workshop on Youth
and Employment in Thailand
25 January 2002
Field Marshal P. Piboonsongkram
Conference Room
Ministry of Labour and Social
Welfare
Introduction
The Ministry of Labour and Social Welfare, in
collaboration with the ILO and the Government of Japan, organized a
workshop on youth and employment in Thailand on 25 January 2002 at
Field Marshal P. Piboonsongkram Conference Room, the Ministry of
Labour and Social Welfare.
The workshop was aimed at sensitizing the public
to problems relating to youth employment and producing proposals for
the development of a national strategy and action plan for youth
employment in Thailand to be put before a regional conference on
youth and employment to be held in Thailand in February 2002.
There was a total of 181 participants, including
104 government representatives, 18 employers’ representatives, 12
workers’ representatives, 17 representatives from non-governmental
organizations, 9 academics, 6 representatives from international
organizations and 15 youths.
At the opening ceremony, Mr. Ian Chambers,
Director of the East Asia Multidisciplinary Advisory Team and ILO
Bangkok Area Office, pointed out that youth unemployment is part of
a larger picture of the labour force in Thailand. The situation of
youths affects the wellbeing of families and communities and has an
impact on the economic, social and political sustainability of the
country. An example is the affect of youth unemployment on social
security. The workshop would focus on four strategies adopted by the
Millenium Summit. These included employability, equality,
entrepreneurship and employment, which are at the heart of a
sustainable policy. The workshop’s results would assist the
preparation of the action plan.
Mr. Elawat Chandraprasert, Permanent Secretary of
Labour and Social Welfare, delivered the opening speech on behalf of
Prof. Dej Boon-long, Minister of Labour and Social Welfare. In a
nutshell, the speech said that the Government of Thailand has
attached great importance to the removal of unemployment. This has
been reflected in its adoption of policies and urgent measures
including financial measures to stimulate growth and alleviate
social impacts, measures to encourage private investment and
measures to strengthen the economy and society. For efforts to
tackle youth unemployment to have a sustainable impact, the
Permanent Secretary pointed to the need for systematic and ongoing
action involving all parties concerned with an emphasis on proactive
action to prevent problems and mitigate their severity. The
Permanent Secretary viewed the workshop as a timely forum to discuss
the policy and action plan to effectively address unemployment in a
manner in which successes will be sustainable in the long term,
where generation of decent work for youths has been set as a vital
goal.
A power point presentation on
youth and employment by the Ministry of Labour
and Social Welfare
The United Nations has defined "youth"
as a person between the ages of 15-24 years. For Thailand,
"youth" means a person between 15-25 years of age.
According to an ILO estimate, 60 million youths are unemployed
worldwide, accounting for 41% of a global total of 160 unemployed
people. It has been found that female youths are in greater
difficulty than male youths. Unemployment negatively affects both
the economy and the society. The international community should,
therefore, strive to promote youth employment with a view to the
eventual provision of decent work for young people.
A panel discussion about youth
and employment in Thailand
Mr. Elawat Chandraprasert, Permanent Secretary of
Labour and Social Welfare, said the Ministry of Labour and Social
Welfare was aware of the importance of youth and the importance of
preparing them both before and after their entry into the labour
market. Accordingly, the Ministry had stressed the enhancement of
youth knowledge such as their knowledge of foreign languages and
their mathematical ability. There is also an emphasis on continuing
education. Regarding the removal of youth unemployment, this
requires the support of various parties. The Government views youth
unemployment as a task demanding serious care in order to protect
youths from exploitation and to promote their development into a
quality workforce. On its own part, the Ministry of Labour and
Social Welfare has to act swiftly on vocational guidance and the
labour market.
Miss Maliwan Kulawanich, Expert on Youth
Development from the National Youth Bureau, said the Child and Youth
Development Plan for the period of the 9th National
Economic and Social Development Plan has set a state policy of
preparing youths in various aspects such as occupation, education,
training, and occupational promotion. The Ministry of Labour and
Social Welfare and other public agencies as well as the private
sector have already been acting to implement this policy. In
addition, the Cabinet approved on 15 January 2002 a national policy
on modern wisdom, which aims to encourage more working people to
engage in self-employment. This requires an educational system under
which children will learn to think analytically and independently.
The National Youth Bureau has been allocated a budget of 24 million
baht out of which funding support will be given to youths including
both those in school and those having left formal schooling. A list
of occupations youths want to engage in most includes in order of
importance animal husbandry, agriculture and shop keeping.
Mr. Vim Roongkrout, Deputy Director General of
Industrial Promotion, Ministry of Industry, said that his Department
was emphasizing the development of new entrepreneurs by providing
them with knowledge of how to run a business and the development of
computer programmers, which are much in demand by the labour market.
Mr. Sangchai Ekpatanapanich, Deputy
Secretary-General of the Industrial Council of Thailand, said that
all parties should strive together to improve the educational system
so that it would work for the success in national development. In
doing their business, entrepreneurs look at costs and benefits.
Labour is one of the costs. Quality labour is ,therefore, demanded.
In determining quality labour, entrepreneurs consider three factors.
The first is educational achievement, especially knowledge of
science, mathematics and foreign languages. The second factor is
skills, in which area the Government should take a due interest in
continuing development. The third factor is work ethics which
include maturity and work attitude. He added that more action should
be taken on technological exchanges and cooperation with foreign
countries.
Assistant Professor Lae Dilokwitayarat, Director
of the Center for Labour Development and Management, Chulalongkorn
University, acknowledged the Government’ s contribution to
employment generation. He pointed, however, to a lack of government
policy aimed specifically to help youth employment. Youth
unemployment, he said, led to economic and social problems and
crime. In addition, unemployment and underemployment represent
wasteful investment of the country.
Miss Apiwan Panraksa, Chairperson of the
Nongkhaem District Youth Council, said that the Office of the Fund
for the Society had organized training for youth leaders in
communities in Bangkok with an emphasis on drug problems and
unemployment. Later, the Nongkhaem District Youth Council formed an
occupational group raising funds among its members to produce goods
for sale to earn a supplementary income. Problems encountered have
included inadequate importance accorded them by adults, their lack
of skills required in producing goods, and their lack of learning
for self-employment. What youth actually want now is funding support
and training so that they can rely on themselves, which will
contribute in time to the strength of communities.
During the time for questions and exchanges, Mr.
Sripo Wayupak, representative from the Federation of Textile
Industry Labour, expressed the view that efforts should be targeted
specifically on youths who have completed their education and are
looking for work. Part-time work should not be promoted lest
part-time workers may replace full-time workers adding to the
already large number of unemployed people. Mrs. Orachit Bamroong –sakulsawas,
representative from the Office of the Fund for the Society, the
Savings Bank, argued that a clear distinction should be made between
employment in the formal sector and that in the informal sector.
Importance should be attached to employment in the informal sector
through organization of that sector, the establishment of a social
safety net, community activities and promotional activities.
The Permanent Secretary of Labour and Social
Welfare said in reply that the Ministry had charge of all aspects of
the matter, especially how to ensure the survival of workers in the
informal sector. Mr. Sangchai Ekpatanapanich responded that
part-time employment would provide a good opportunity for youths
waiting for full-time employment. Assistant Professor Lae said the
Government should play more of a proactive role in employment
service.
A presentation on wages and
youth employment in Thailand by Dr.
Kosa Areeya, Dean of the Faculty of Economics, Rangsit University
The rate of youth unemployment in Thailand is
still high, double that among adults. The reasons include the size
of youth population, mismatch of labour skill demand and supply, and
an insufficient aggregate labour demand resulting from economic
recession which has also contributed to the aggregate youth
unemployment. Looking at wage rates, especially minimum wage rates
enforced for social protection and distribution of growth benefits,
it has been found that wage rates should be considered in relation
to productivity. To enhance productivity, it is clearly necessary to
tackle youth unemployment. What needs special attention is the
development of youths so that they will gain work experience and
undergo training. This is to be done through both formal and
informal education. Youths are also to be inculcated with the
concept of lifelong learning so that they will be able to make
continuing improvement of their productivity.
Group discussions
The meeting was broken into 4 groups according to
the wishes of the participants. The results of their discussions
were as follows.
Group 1 on the theme of employability
The group produced the following views and
recommendations.
1. The system of education and training
(a) The Government should expand educational
opportunities by extending compulsory education and extending free
education to the level of high certificates or diplomas.
(b) Public educational facilities should be
sufficiently available to help remove the problem of youths going to
private facilities where they have to bear high costs.
2. Integration of education, training and
vocational training
(a) A focus should be on improvement of curricula
especially to inculcate the idea of lifelong learning in youths.
(b) Knowledge of the labour market, market
demands and professional skills should be provided to youths from
their school days so that they will be able to choose their field of
schooling according to their interest and have the opportunity to
undergo vocational training alongside ordinary education.
(c) Youths who have completed education and are
entering the labour market should also have the opportunity to
enhance their knowledge and skills so that they will be able to make
continuing improvement of their capabilities.
(d) Youths should be encouraged to learn and
develop their skills for self- employment from their school days.
This will help widen their aspirations to become entrepreneurs and
not limit their ambition to the prospect of becoming a wage worker.
(e) Youths should undergo a widening of
educational world view so that they will have an overall and
integrated picture of educational and training processes.
3. The target groups and work approach
(a) The target groups
-Children and youths in the formal educational
system including children undergoing primary, secondary, vocational
and tertiary education. Curricula should be broadened to include
knowledge of entrepreneurship and the use of IT. Practical English
instruction is to be stressed so that youths will have a truly
working knowledge of the language.
-Children and youths outside the formal
educational system and underprivileged children. These children and
youths are to be equipped with skills that go with market needs and
to be prepared before entering into the labour market.
(b) The work approach
-Efforts should be taken to provide youths with
opportunities to assist researchers since there is a market demand
for trained researchers.
-Educational institutions should play a role in
vocational training and guidance.
-Youths entering into the labour market should be
equipped with necessary knowledge through, for example, personality
development training and instruction of working English.
4. Capability enhancement for human resources
(a) The Government should attach importance to
the instruction of foreign languages and the use of IT. The matter
should be placed on national agenda on which action shall be taken
for concrete results.
(b) All educational institutions should provide
short-course or long-course training on foreign languages and the
use of IT at not too high a cost or at no cost.
5. The role of workers’ organizations and of
employers in the preparation of youths
(a) The role of workers’ organizations is to
let employers know what they should do.
(b) The role of employers is to receive youths
for training at their establishments under the concept of "
transforming a school into a factory." This should be taken
seriously by the Government, which may issue a law to oblige
establishments to receive youths for training. The obligation is not
to be of an optional nature as in the case of the employment of
disabled persons where establishments may choose to pay money rather
than take disabled workers.
(c) In the agricultural sector, employers who are
themselves farmers may play a role in training of youths along the
lines of the concept of the Project "Developing Youths for a
New Life" of the Department of Public Welfare.
6. The role of the family
Parents should have a proper idea of how to bring
up their children.
Group 2 on the theme of equality
The group came out with the following
suggestions.
1. Reduction of discrimination against women :
This requires expansion of access to resources, education,
occupational information and skill development. Women and
communities must also have more of a say in policy matters.
2. Promotional measures to help
underprivileged youths including female youths
(a) education : Curricula are to be adapted to
stress science, mathematics and foreign languages to respond to the
needs of the labour market. Educational technologies are to be made
equally available in urban and rural areas.
(b) skill development : The Government should
conduct a survey of the needs of youths. The community and the local
wisdom should be involved in the design of training courses. Care
should be taken to strike a proper proportion between different
groups of youths on training courses.
(c) labour market : On the part of workers in the
formal sector, the proportion of women workers should be boosted.
Conditions of employment, career progress and equality of
opportunities for all jobs should be guaranteed for them. For those
in the informal sector, the Government should allocate a budget to
communities and provide vocational training.
(d) social measures : Values in society should be
adapted to promote equality.
Group 3 on the theme of entrepreneurship
The group had an extensive discussion about what
it takes to be a good entrepreneur. It then moved on to issues
significant in the development of entrepreneurial capabilities.
1. Qualities of a good entrepreneur :
These include a personality of creative thinking and being always on
the lookout for new opportunities, possession of basic knowledge and
professional know-how and monitoring and evaluating ability.
2. Conditions conducive to the development of
entrepreneurial capabilities
- mechanisms favourable for entrepreneurship.
- an environment encouraging youths to learn and understand
themselves.
- availability of information services and access to sources
of information.
- prevalence of the use of IT.
- To develop themselves into entrepreneurs, youths need to
have basic
knowledge and professional skills such as
technical skills, managerial skills and a knowledge of relevant
regulations.
(f) Advantage should be taken of the Project
" One Tambon, One Product" and other projects that promote
entrepreneurship.
(g) An "incubating" center should be
established to provide facilitating services to new entrepreneurs at
the startup of their businesses.
(h) financial support from sources catering
specifically for youths.
(i) regulations governing the opening and closing
of businesses.
(j) The family and the community should play an
encouraging role in the promotion of youth entrepreneurship.
(k) A network of agencies and communities should
be established for the promotion of youth entrepreneurship.
Group 4 on the theme of employment
The group put forward the following suggestions.
1. Generation of sustainable employment for
youths : Action should be taken to
(a) provide vocational training and preparatory
training before entry into the labour market.
(b) provide occupational guidance and information
about sources of materials, funding and tools.
(c) provide guidance on continuing education.
(d) revise relevant legislation. For example, the
Labour Protection law should be amended so as to provide that
employers shall pay remuneration to youth trainees.
(e) other things : changes to the teaching
approach at schools, promotion of parents’ and communities’
understanding and acceptance of youth employment, and etc.
2. Equipping youths with the skill of IT use
: The following should be done.
(a) The educational curricula should be so
revised as to place a stronger stress on skills in foreign
languages, mathematics and the use of IT as well as in management.
Youths also should learn work discipline.
(b) Cooperation should be sought from employers
so that youths can have part-time jobs.
(c) A national policy should be adopted without
further delay on the generation of sustainable employment.
(d) Cooperation should be sought from communities
so that youths can be involved in community activities.
3. How to enhance the opportunities of
underprivileged youths
(a) Every community (maybe through the Tambon
Administrative Organization) should have a center which provides
information about sources of employment and finance and occupational
development training courses.
(b) Tighter controls should be introduced on
foreign workers so that they will not replace Thai workers
particularly in jobs where youths can be engaged as part-time
workers.
(c) A focal-point unit should be designated to
coordinate the efforts of agencies whose work is concerned with
children, vocational training and guidance such as the Ministry of
Labour and Social Welfare, the Ministry of Education, foundations
and non-governmental organizations.
