Central Thailand prepares for return of thousands of Burmese workers

The central province of Samut Sakhon is preparing for the return of over 5,000 migrant labourers from Myanmar over the next month. The workers had returned to their home country to obtain the required paperwork and officials now say their employers must take responsibility for their quarantine.

Employers are being asked to arrange accommodation to house the workers for the 14 day mandatory quarantine period, with Samut Sakhon governor Veerasak Vijitsaengsri expressing his confidence that the actions of employers and officials will mean there will be no further spreading of the Covid-19 virus among the migrant community.

Officials will no doubt be looking at the recent experience in Singapore, where the virus was thought to be under control until an outbreak in more than 20,000 of its migrant workers caused an unexpected “second wave”, with the city state regularly reporting over 1,000 new cases a day at one point. The country now has over 32,000 cases after having a total of exactly 1,000 cases on April 1.

Nation Thailand reports that around 600 companies based in Samut Sakhon will re-hire 5,400 workers from Myanmar after both the Thai and Myanmar governments signed a memorandum of understanding. These companies are now responsible for ensuring their employees fulfill the mandatory quarantine requirements.

Officials state that each worker should be provided with a room and private bathroom if possible, but where two workers must share a room, there must be at least one metre distance between the beds. Regular temperature checks are mandatory, as is the provision of hand sanitiser and face masks for all workers.

SOURCE: Nation Thailand