Reuters-INTERVIEW-Thais to rule on

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Subject: Reuters-INTERVIEW-Thais to rule on worker deportation soon 

INTERVIEW-Thais to rule on worker deportation soon
07:14 a.m. Jul 21, 1999 Eastern
By Monthira Wirotanan

BANGKOK, July 21 (Reuters) - Thailand said on Wednesday it would decide next
week whether to deport some 91,000 illegal foreign workers mainly from
Myanmar, Cambodia and Laos.

Labour and Social Welfare Minister, Wut Sukosol, told Reuters the country
still needed foreign workers to fill certain jobs but said national security
precluded large numbers.

A government panel will decide on the fate of the illegal workers on July 26
ahead of an August deadline.

``We have to permit some as there are some kinds of jobs which Thais don't
want to do. So it may be necessary for us to lessen the numbers,'' he said
in an interview.

The unskilled workers due for deportation work mainly in the agriculture
sector and some in construction.

The alien workers were identified last year and were to be deported by the
government, when their Thai employers intervened and lodged appeals for them
to be allowed to remain.

Authorities allowed the aliens to stay on for another year, with temporary
work permits until August 4 this year, provided they registered with the
government.

As the deportation deadline neared, Thai employers again appealed for
another extension for the workers, saying they had found it hard to employ
Thais willing to do their jobs.

In addition to the registered foreign workers due for repatriation, Thailand
also has another 540,000 illegal foreign workers.

Wut said a survey by Bangkok's Chulalongkorn University estimated that
Thailand needed around 190,000 foreign workers to work in fishing, milling,
mining, construction and agriculture.

Thai employers had asked the ministry to allow a total of 350,000 foreign
workers.

``Personally, I think the 190,000 figure is too big and it might be too much
for us to allow that,'' Wut said.

``I will propose to the committee that we should allow some workers to
continue working for only a short-term or three months and then try to
promote Thais to take their jobs,'' he added.

Most foreign workers are paid less than Thais and they are prepared to do
unpopular and menial jobs. Some also have specialist skills needed by Thai

industries.

But higher unemployment has put pressure on the Thai government to send more
foreign workers home.

The number of unemployed jumped to 1.31 million or about 4.0 percent of the
nation's 32.7 million-strong workforce at end-1998 from about 495,000 or 1.5
percent at end-1997, the National Economic and Social Development Board had
said.

Wut said that even if economic recovery helped ease unemployment, there
would be no let up in Thailand's policy of deporting illegal foreign
workers.

``We have very long borders with our neighbouring countries and they
(workers) can't find jobs there,'' he said.

``What we can do at this moment is to find them and send them back as many
as we can,'' he added.

((Bangkok Newsroom +662 637-5500 ext417,
e-mail:bangkok.newsroom+reuters.com))