This is a post made over on the old Thai School Watch site that I felt would be very useful to all. It is good to know the law, but good luck enforcing it. Yes, if your contract is cut early then you are entitled to 30 days of severance pay.
Thai Employment Law-the lowdown
Are you seeking answers to the following questions... Can I get temporally leave from my work? Is my business covered by Ministerial Regulations? Will I be paid if I am absent? What happens if I fall pregnant? Need child labour regulations? Will I get Severance Pay? ...read on....
Laws are written to protect you and confuse you! The jobpilot 'legal beagles', with the able support of the Department of Labour Protection and Welfare, have prepared an easy to understand guide to Thailand's foremost labour protection law. So for answers to the aforementioned questions jump in....
General Information
Working Hours
Rest Periods
Holidays
Leave
Pay and Welfare
Basic Pay
Overtime work and Holiday work
Overtime Pay, Holiday Pay and Holiday Overtime Pay
Welfare
Severance Pay
Employment law for companies
Work Documents
Control
Submission of Complaints
Penalties
Female and Child Employment laws
Female Labour
Child
Labour
General Information
Working hours
Not exceed 8 hours per day and 48 hours per week Works which may be harmful to the health or safety of the employees as prescribed by Ministerial Regulations shall not exceed seven hours per day and not exceed 42 hours per week.
Rest Periods
During a working day an employer shall allow an employee a rest period of at least one hour once the employee has worked on that day for his first consecutive hours.
The employer and employee may agree in advance to have each rest period of less than one hour, but not less than twenty minutes each time whilst the total rest period for the day shall not be less than one hour.
Where the nature or type of work necessitates continuous performance, stoppage may damage the work, or it is an urgent, the employer may require an employee not to have a rest period with consent of the employee.
Holidays
Weekly Holidays
? An employer shall let an employee have at least one day off per week as a weekly holiday and the interval between each weekly holiday shall be no longer than six days.
? An employee shall get his basic pay on weekly holidays (excluding daily workers, hourly workers, or works based upon output)
? An employee and employer may agree in advance to fix which day shall be the weekly holiday.
? As to hotel, transport, forestry work or work performed in isolated areas (fishery works, extinguishing work) or other work prescribed by Ministerial Regulations, an employer and employee may agree in advance that weekly holidays be accumulated and be taken at a later time, but nevertheless during the period of four consecutive weeks.
? In case of unidentified weekly holidays, an employer shall notify an employee not less than 3 days in advance and report Labour Inspectors within 7 days since the day of notification.
Traditional Holidays
Not less than 13 days including National Labour Day. Where a traditional holiday falls on a weekly holiday, the employee shall be granted an additional holiday on the following working day.
An employee shall get his basic pay on traditional holidays
Annual Vacation
An employee who has worked continuously for one full year shall be entitled to an annual vacation of not less than six working days.
An employee is entitled to get his basic pay on his annual vacation.
For an employee who has worked for less than one year, the employer may grant the employee an annual vacation on a pro-rata basis.
An employer is entitled to arrange an annual vacation and notify an employee in advance, or arrange as their agreement.
An employer and employee may agree in advance that the annual vacation be cumulative and postponed and taken together with that of the following year.
Leave
Sick Leave
An employee is entitled to sick leave and get his basic pay at a rate equal to the basic pay for a normal working day for the entire time taken as sick leave for up to 30 working days per annum.
Maternity Leave
A pregnant female employee is entitled to maternity leave of not more than 90 days for each pregnancy, including holidays during the maternity leave and get her basic pay at a rate equal to normal working days during the leave but not exceed 45 days.
Sterilization leave
An employee is entitled to take leave for the purposes of sterilization and shall have the right to take leave as a result of the sterilization for such time as a first class medical practitioner shall prescribe and in respect of which he issues a certificate and get his basic pay at a rate equal to normal working days during the leave.
Personal Business Leave
An employee is entitled to take leave to attend to his personal business as necessary in accordance with work regulations.
An employee shall not get his basic pay on his personal business leave.
Military Service Leave
An employee is entitled to take leave for military service when the government makes a call for personnel inspection, for military training, or for testing of combat readiness, and get his basic pay at a rate equal to normal working days during the leave but not exceed 60 days.
Training Leave
An employee is entitled to take leave for training or development of his knowledge and skills in accordance with the rules and procedures prescribed by Ministerial Regulations.
An employee shall not get his basic pay on his training leave
The rights and duties of the employer and the employee are generally governed by the Labor Protection Act ("LPA") and the Civil and Commercial Code ("CCC"). Generally, under Tailand employment laws an agreement between the employer and the employee cannot be less than the minimum standards or requirements set by law. A "non-competition" clause agreed between the parties is governed by the Unfair Contract Terms Act. A written employment agreement is highly recommended, and Thai employment agreements must be carefully drafted.
Terms of Employment
The maximum probationary period permissible under Thai employment law is 120 days. All employers are required by labour law to provide at least 13 official public holidays per year, and six vacation days after one full year of service. Apart from salary, all benefits arising from employment are regarded as assessable income subject to withholding tax at a progressive rate. Under Thailand labor law an employee is entitled to annual sick leave of 30 working days per year, with full pay. In addition to sick-leave, a pregnant woman is entitled to 90 days of maternity leave (inclusive of holidays), including 45 work days at full pay.
Termination of Employment
Employment termination with cause (in which event the employer can terminate employment without notice and/or compensation) is governed by the provisions of Section 583 of the Civil and Commercial Code and Section 119 of the LPA, and includes gross negligence, willful disobedience, dishonesty or criminal act. When there is employment termination without cause, it is compulsory under employment laws that the employer make severance payment (in addition to notice) to the employee according to the length of unbroken service:
From 120 days but less than 1 year the amount is 30 days
1 year but less than 3 years the amount is 90 days
3 years but less than 6 years the amount is 180 days
6 years but less than 10 years the amount is 240 days
10 years and over the amount is 300 days
SPECIAL LEAVE
Under Thailand labour laws employees must have the right to take sterilization leave, for which period full wage must be paid by the employer.
RELOCATION OF THE BUSINESS
Under Thailand employment laws, material relocation of the place of work by the employer gives the employee the right to refuse assignment and claim 50% of the customary severance for not-for-cause dismissal.
The rights and duties of the employer and the employee are generally governed by the Labor Protection Act ("LPA") and the Civil and Commercial Code ("CCC"). Generally, under Tailand employment laws an agreement between the employer and the employee cannot be less than the minimum standards or requirements set by law. A "non-competition" clause agreed between the parties is governed by the Unfair Contract Terms Act. A written employment agreement is highly recommended, and Thai employment agreements must be carefully drafted.
Terms of Employment
The maximum probationary period permissible under Thai employment law is 120 days. All employers are required by labour law to provide at least 13 official public holidays per year, and six vacation days after one full year of service. Apart from salary, all benefits arising from employment are regarded as assessable income subject to withholding tax at a progressive rate. Under Thailand labor law an employee is entitled to annual sick leave of 30 working days per year, with full pay. In addition to sick-leave, a pregnant woman is entitled to 90 days of maternity leave (inclusive of holidays), including 45 work days at full pay.
Termination of Employment
Employment termination with cause (in which event the employer can terminate employment without notice and/or compensation) is governed by the provisions of Section 583 of the Civil and Commercial Code and Section 119 of the LPA, and includes gross negligence, willful disobedience, dishonesty or criminal act. When there is employment termination without cause, it is compulsory under employment laws that the employer make severance payment (in addition to notice) to the employee according to the length of unbroken service:
From 120 days but less than 1 year the amount is 30 days
1 year but less than 3 years the amount is 90 days
3 years but less than 6 years the amount is 180 days
6 years but less than 10 years the amount is 240 days
10 years and over the amount is 300 days
jbriggs@worldwideconsulting.comJohn H.Briggs
01(505)737-5500
Topic: Thai Employment Law (Read 3095 times)