Thailand is set to raise its daily minimum wage by an average of 5 percent beginning in October to help workers cope with high inflation and the COVID-19 impact, the Labor Ministry said on Friday.
Boonchob Suthamanaswong, the permanent secretary for the Labor Ministry, said the national wage committee has unanimously agreed to increase the daily minimum wage rate by 5.02 percent.
The new daily minimum wage will vary by region, ranging from 328 baht ($9.02) to 354 baht ($9.78), and will be implemented in nine groups of provinces.
The hikes will still require approval from the cabinet next week. This will be the first increase in Thailand’s daily minimum wage since January 2020, when the rate was raised by 1.6 to 1.8 percent.
Boonchob said it aims to help workers cope with the high inflation, which reached a 14-year high of 7.61 percent in July.
“The committee views that the policy rate should be normalized to the level that is consistent with sustainable growth in the long term,” it stated, while suggesting that monetary policy normalization should be done gradually.
The government has estimated foreign tourist arrivals will reach 10 million this year. Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-o-cha said the economy was expected to grow 3.3 percent this year, helped by increased tourism.
