ASEAN: Thailand’s initiative to establish a common set of standards for labor rights

At a time when the ASEAN group of nations is looking to put an economic area in place by the end of 2015, the Thai government has designed a draft ASEAN agreement on the promotion and protection of the rights of workers of this region. Thailand sees the need for a common set of standards to protect all workers in the region and is also mindful of the potential loss in its competitiveness as compared with its neighbors should minimum social standards not exist throughout the ASEAN region. The project covers a diverse range of subjects including the right to collective bargaining and women workers’ rights. Unions have welcomed the project, all the while cognizant of the difficulties in its adoption.
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Encapsulate all workers in one ASEAN agreement. The Thai Commission for Legislative Reform has designed a draft ASEAN agreement on the Promotion and Protection of the Rights of Workers and it was published for consultation in December 2014. Reasons for such an agreement were identified to include the effects of a significant increase in the flow of capital as well as unequal levels of workers’ rights protection across the region’s countries. The project agreement targets both equal treatment f

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