Thailand: Doors open to foreign workers

The country plans to allow more foreign workers into the country starting next month to fill a labour shortage that has hurt manufacturers and poses a risk to an economy that’s just starting to recover from the Covid-19 outbreak.

The government is allowing illegal workers now in Thailand to register by the end of the month to assess how many more people to allow in from neighbouring countries, such as Myanmar, Cambodia and Laos. Labour Minister Suchart Chomklin said he expects about 100,000 will be counted, with the overall shortage estimated at about 300,000. “We will start prosecuting illegal workers from next month because we can’t take any risks that will lead to any new outbreak,” Suchart said.