Mr. Suchart Sitthichai, Senior Vice President, CPF, who manages the Nakhon Ratchasima chicken processing plant, affirmed that CPF was truly aware of the indispensability of migrant workers especially those from Cambodia and Myanmar who help drive the Thai economy. In hiring migrant workers, CPF adheres to the policy to hire them on an equal, fair and non-discriminatory basis which aligns with international standards and the humanitarian principles. According to Mr. Suchart, CPF condemns all exploitation forms of child labor, forced labor and human trafficking.
At present, CPF's chicken processing plant at Nakhon Ratchasima is employing 2,300 Cambodian workers, all of whom are directly hired by the firm, Mr. Suchart said. This is the fruition of intense collaboration between the Thai and Cambodian governments to select reliable licensed labor agencies in Cambodia. The selected firms then were subject to verification under the standards of Thailand's Ministry of Labor before they were allowed to recruit workers for CPF.
CPF is honored to welcome H.E. Eat Sophea, Cambodian Ambassador to Thailand, on her visit to CPF's chicken processing plant at Nakhon Ratchasima as an opportunity to be informed of CPF's hiring policy of migrant workers as well as to witness working conditions, welfare, fair and non-discriminatory treatment of Cambodian labor offered by CPF.
Mr. Suchart explained that selected Cambodian workers are fairly treated as soon as labor agencies transfer them to the firm at the Thai-Cambodian border at Klong Luek District, Sa Kaew Province. Food and vehicles are provided. CPF is also responsible for all expenses relating to work permit and health check-up based on its direct-hiring policy. Cambodian workers then attend a five-day training program before start working in the production line. In addition, buses and dormitories are provided free-of-charge to facilitate workers.
Cambodian workers are entitled to the same legal labor rights accessible by Thai workers. This includes, among a few, a minimum wage of Baht 300 a day, 1.5 times normal pay as an overtime pay during normal working days and 2 times overtime pay during holidays, 30 days' sick leave, 7 days' business leave and no fewer than six days' annual leave plus social security. One thing that CPF provides for everyone with no exception is medical allowance.
To overcome the issue of language, CPF has set up the Thai-Cambodian Coordination Center staffed with Cambodian-speaking interpreters to communicate at the plants and during emergency situations, Mr. Suchart said.
"Cambodian workers who are with us can send as much as Baht 8,000 a month back to their families, which does improve their living conditions. A lot of them come from the same village," Mr. Suchart said.
With its commitment to treat migrant workers on a non-discriminatory basis based on the humanitarian principles, most recently, CPF has been accredited the highest level of the Thai Labor Standard Accreditation (Thai Labor Standard 8001-2553). "This really reflects our spirit to treat all workers under our roof on a fair, non-discriminatory standard that meets international labor practices. Ultimately, we hope to raise work standards of all our labor at our workplace," Mr. Suchart said.