Chiang Mai (Mizzima) – Thailand currently has more than 1.45 million legal Burmese migrant workers, but an estimated 500,000 illegal Burmese workers did not register for work permits in the recent round that has just concluded, according to experts.
Andy Hall, an expert at the Institute of Population and Social Research at Thailand's Mahidol University, said: “If you ask me how many Myanmar [Burmese] workers are in Thailand, I would say now we have a figure of 1.45 million, and perhaps there is another half a million due to register but nobody knows,” Hall told Mizzima.July 14 was the deadline for an illegal migrant to register for a work permit in Thailand. During the one-month registration period, more than 640,000 Burmese workers registered; about 800,000 Burmese workers had already registered in previous years.
A total of 984,545 migrant workers, 643,092 from Burma, 102,854 from Laos and 238,586 from Cambodia registered, authorities said.
Hall, also a consultant at the Bangkok-based Human Rights and Development Foundation, said that allowing the illegal workers to register was a positive for the government. “When the workers have legal registration, they have more confidence and more security.”
Officially, a worker had to spend 2,980 baht to 3,880 baht (about US$ 100) to register. However, most Burmese workers registered through a Thai broker at a cost of at least 6,000 baht.
Some employers’ unwillingness and the complex process prevented some workers from registering, sources close to the workers said.
Now, there are three types of Burmese migrant workers in Thailand. Some workers have been identified as Burmese citizens and have temporary passports, some have submitted applications to be identified as Burmese citizens and are waiting for approval, and some have applied for work permits but have not submitted applications to be identified as Burmese citizens.
Among the 1.45 million legal Burmese workers in Thailand, 500,000 had temporary passports and about 950,000 have not finished the process to be identified as Burmese citizens, Hall said.
To get a temporary passport, a worker must pay about 3,000 kyat (US$ 3.50) to a Burmese office and 500 baht to the Thai visa office; most Burmese workers get a temporary passport through a broker at a cost of 6,000 to 7,000 baht.
In June, Burmese deputy Foreign Minister Maung Myint met with officials from the Thai Ministry of Labour, and agreed to increase the stay of a temporary passport from three to six years for applicants who apply after July 1.
Illegal workers can be sentenced up to five years in prison or fined from 20,000 baht to 100,000 baht or both. Usually, Burmese illegal workers are sent back to Burma. Employers who hire illegal workers can be fined from 10,000 baht to 100,000 baht per illegal worker.
The exact number of Burmese migrant workers including illegal workers in Thailand is still unknown. Meanwhile, Burmese workers continue to enter into Thailand illegally; some estimates place the number of Burmese workers in Thailand at nearly 3 million.
