Yotchanan Leads Labour Day 2025 Push for Quality Jobs, Offers Hope to Thai Workers

On May 1, 2025, at Bangkok City Square outside Bangkok Metropolitan Administration Hall, Deputy Prime Minister Yotchanan Wongsawat, who also serves as Minister of Higher Education, Science, Research and Innovation, presided over Labour Day celebrations alongside Labour Minister Julphand Amornvivat and related officials.

Yotchanan emphasized that the government's primary goal extends beyond economic growth—it must ensure workers enjoy a better quality of life, as labour is a vital mechanism driving the nation forward. He stressed three key dimensions of International Labour Day: recognizing workers as essential pillars of the country; listening to and advocating for workers' rights and welfare; and fostering cooperation between employers and employees to solve problems collectively.

Yotchanan acknowledged that Thai workers face multiple challenges, including Middle East crises affecting energy prices and living costs, as well as technological transitions involving artificial intelligence and green economy shifts. The government must therefore pursue both reactive and proactive policies alongside workforce skill development, particularly for the combustion engine industry requiring adaptation to new technologies.

The government will also establish a national skills database to match worker capabilities with industry demands, providing support systems to increase employment and income opportunities.

Yotchanan stressed that labour issues extend beyond the Labour Ministry alone—they require comprehensive human resource management involving all ministries.

For his part, Julphand presented five urgent strategies:

1. Modern social security system reform—introducing the CARE formula to calculate retirement pensions aligned with actual wages throughout workers' lives, ensuring financial security in retirement. 2. Future skills development—accelerating AI adoption to enhance Thai workers' expertise to international standards through intellectual capital promotion. 3. Proactive rights protection—emphasizing reskilling and upskilling programs to encourage employers to develop staff rather than lay off workers, with concrete workplace safety measures. 4. Skilled labour market expansion—broadening opportunities for overseas employment in high-paying positions and systematizing cross-border labour management. 5. Platform worker advancement—creating flexible social security systems for freelancers and gig workers to ensure equitable access to welfare and protection.

Worker groups submitted eight key demands to the government, including ratification of ILO Conventions 87 and 98 for collective bargaining rights, establishing a risk insurance fund, increasing maternity benefits to 30,000 baht, and expanding protection for contract workers. Yotchanan accepted all proposals and ordered a follow-up task force within 30 days to demonstrate the government's commitment to creating quality employment.