Thailand’s labour market improves in Q1 | World

People walk in Bangkok, Thailand (Photo: VNA)

Bangkok (VNA) – The labour
market of Thailand improved in the first quarter of 2023, with 98% of the labour
force employed, according to the National Statistical Office (NSO).

Data showed that among the 58.8 million people aged
15 and over, 40.3 million or 68.5% were in the labour force with 39.6
million or 98% employed.

NSO Director-General Piyanuch Wuttisorn said
the number of full-time employees working between 35-49 hours a week increased
by more than 300,000. Those working 50 hours per week increased by more
than 700,000, and the ones working less than 35 hours per week declined by
about 130,000.

Meanwhile, the number of unemployed people
declined to 420,000 or 1.1% in Q1, the same rate as before the COVID-19
pandemic.

The long-term unemployment rate – those who have
been unemployed for 12 months or more – has also improved, with the number dropping
to 87,000 in Q1 from 113,000 in Q4 of 2022. The long-term unemployed who are
holders of a bachelor’s degree also decreased to 35,000, compared to 45,000 in
the previous quarter.

However, quasi-unemployment numbers increased to
3.4 million in Q1 from 2.1 million in the previous quarter. They
comprise those working less than 20 hours per week in the agricultural sector
and less than 24 hours outside this sector.

Though they still have work to do, their income
declines due to shorter working hours, and they are at risk of unemployment in
the future, the NSO official said.

She attributed the labour market’s improvement in Q1 partly
to the return of Chinese tourists after China’s relaxation of COVID-19 travel
restrictions./.