Gov pushes for tougher work permit rules

PHUKET: In a meeting in Bangkok with the Parliamentary Committee on Labor, Governor CEO Pongpayome Vasaputi last week proposed tougher rules for the issue of work permits. The Governor was invited to the meeting following a backlash from the Phuket and Pattaya Chambers of Commerce over the recent relaxation of permit rules. Speaking on 96.75 FM radio on Monday, Gov Pongpayome said the MPs agreed that people applying for new work permits should do so in person, and that occupations open to foreigners should be stipulated, along with the maximum number of permits for each occupation. “I explained to the committee that we want foreigners to stay. But those foreigners must … do work that is useful for Thailand or Phuket – work that cannot be done by Thais because we don’t have enough skilled people. “The second [group we want] is rich retired people who fall in love with Phuket and want to stay here for five or six months. They don’t need work permits. We welcome them.” The governor identified two groups of foreigners he believes should not work in Phuket. “[One] group is bad foreigners who engage in occupations that are unnecessary in Phuket. “The [other] group who come to Thailand legally and then look for jobs are people from Southeast Asian countries, Bangladesh, Nepal and black-skinned Burmese, ‘kaek galah’ [laborers of Indian or Arabic extraction] and Hok people from the North [of Thailand]. These are low-level people who are looking to gain from the Phuket economy. I think we should block work permits for this group because they give us a lot of problems.”