Pipat” announced in the parliament that Social Security members affected by floods will definitely receive 50% of their wages for 180 days, confirming that they will continue to distribute goods and relief bags, saying that they have already instructed the Department of Skill Development to come and mobilize forces to repair houses of those affected. Meanwhile, the “Bhumjaithai Party MP” sweetly thanked the minister and suggested supporting the plan to help workers from future disasters.
In the House of Representatives meeting chaired by Mr. Wan Muhammad Noor Matha, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, the agenda was considered for oral questions from Ms. Phakamas Charoenphan, MP for Surin, Bhumjaithai Party, and Mr. Pipat Ratchakitprakarn, Minister of Labor, regarding relief measures for workers affected by floods.
Ms. Phakamas began by thanking Mr. Pipat for answering the live discussion before asking the first question that due to the severe flooding problem in Thailand, especially in the North,
the Northeast along the Mekong River, and the South, which resulted in the loss of life and property for our Thai brothers and sisters, but with the help, we all know that both the government and the private sector have coordinated as a tripartite to help with the immediate situation. However, the ongoing impact of the flooding problem has caused many companies to close down. Therefore, she would like to ask if the Ministry of Labor has provided assistance to the labor sector both in and out of the system, especially the Social Security Office. How will it provide assistance?
Then, Mr. Pipat explained that from the policy of Ms. Paethongtarn Shinawatra, the Prime Minister, and from the Prime Minister’s visit to take care of those affected by the flood in the North, from Nan, Phrae, Phayao, and Chiang Rai provinces, including Sukhothai, Phitsanulok, and Phichit, which has now reached Chiang Mai and Tak provinces, which have all been affected, he confirmed that there will be compensation for the people.
“Our
social security has measures to take care of insured persons, especially insured persons under Sections 33 and 39. Social security will provide assistance of 50% of the daily wages of the insured persons who are damaged. Even if they are unable to work or stop working, we will provide assistance of 50% of the daily wages for a period not exceeding 180 days,” said Mr. Pipat.
Mr. Pipat emphasized that in addition to that, the Ministry of Labor has also traveled to deliver relief bags to the provinces that have been affected by the disaster. We have received supporters who have donated 1.5-liter bottles of drinking water to the provinces, totaling 150,000 bottles, and distributed no less than 5,000 lunch boxes. Furthermore, after the floods have passed, the Ministry of Labor has a duty to help repair and maintain, especially houses that have been affected by the floods and have damaged electrical systems in the houses. The Department of Skill Development has mobilized technicians in every province in the North
to help.
“Mae Sai still faces serious problems and we cannot clear the area for us to go in and repair. For repairs here, we will look after the electrical system in the house, repair agricultural equipment, and most importantly, vehicles, especially motorcycles. We will change the engine oil and repair them. The Ministry of Labor has requested donations from various companies to support these things, such as drinking water, dry food, and especially equipment such as engine oil, spark plugs, or electrical wires… I may answer the question of the honorable member directly that at present, the Social Security has signed an MOU with the Government Housing Bank (GHB) to help with loans with a minimum interest rate, Social Security Section 39 and 40, not exceeding 2 million baht per person, out of a budget of 10 billion baht that the Social Security will sign an MOU with the Government Housing Bank, with an interest rate for the first five years of 1.59%,” said Mr. Pipat.
This made Ms. Phakamas ask the last quest
ion, just 2 questions: In the situation of unstable weather, will there be another disaster in the future? Does the Ministry of Labor have any support measures or emergency plans? For example, what will help informal workers?
“Our world is in the era of global warming. We are facing changing weather conditions every day. Although Thailand has fewer disasters than other countries, we cannot avoid this. We must prepare a plan to cope with disasters that may occur in the future. We cannot rescue after the incident has already occurred. Therefore, I would like to ask the government and the public sector to consider taking action for the safety of our fellow Thai people,” said Ms. Phakamas.
Mr. Pipat then stood up to answer that this question is a very difficult one to answer. The words global warming, floods, and storms will become more and more severe. We have seen that the largest typhoon in 70 years has recently hit our region, causing damage to Japan, China, Myanmar, and Vietnam, causing both loss of life a
nd property. Fortunately, Thailand was at the end of the line. However, since we have encountered many storms in this region this year, our Ministry of Labor has talked and talked about creating jobs, especially freelance jobs.
“I myself have emphasized through the Department of Skill Development that when we talk about creating independent careers, we must take this as a goal and principle to discuss with the independent career groups in each sub-district. The policy of the Ministry of Labor is 1 sub-district, 1 independent career group, adhering to the BCG policy. We will try to use natural materials in our area, whether it is a sub-district, district, or village, to reuse them to help reduce global warming. We campaign for environmental care and reduce global warming. … The Ministry of Labor tries to provide knowledge on what should be done, what should not be done, and what we think when we do it will not create pollution for the world,” said Mr. Pipat.
Source: Thai News Agency