MaximsNewsNetwork: 02 October 2009 - UNDP: Thai law provides for equal treatment for all workers including migrants and registered migrants so they can access services like health care and education.
Allowing for migration both within and between countries has the potential to increase peoples freedom and improve the lives of millions around the world, according to the 2009 Human Development Report to be launched on Monday (5 October).
In Thailand migrants are encouraged to register and can then receive access to services like health and education.
Pikul Klom, a migrant worker living in the village of Vieng Mung in Northern Thailand, came to seek better employment opportunities across the border.
SOUNDBITE (Thai) Pikul Klom, Cambodian migrant:
I came here because I wanted to work.
Pikul says that she was often unemployed at home.
SOUNDBITE (Thai) Pikul Klom, Cambodian migrant:
Living there was pretty tough. As a farmer, its pretty unpredictable. Sometimes we got a good harvest, sometimes a bad one. The harvest was only once a year, and there were no other jobs for the rest of the year.
Because Thai law makes it clear that every worker needs to be treated equally, Pikul and her husband can make a living here and send money home to their families.
SOUNDBITE (Thai) Kom Tong, Pikuls husband:
I was a construction worker in Cambodia. Harder work with much less pay. I couldnt make the ends meet. Here I get higher salary, free accommodation and food. I can even send some money back home.
Contrary to commonly held beliefs, migrants typically boost economic output and give more than they take.
The report Overcoming Barriers: Human mobility and development shows that immigration generally increases employment in host communities, does not crowd out locals from the job market and improves rates of investment in new businesses and initiatives.
In Thailand, national law states that migrant workers have the right to be treated as equal to Thai workers regardless of nationality, gender, age, or religion. That includes an equal standard of salary and benefits.
The author of the 2009 Human Development Report, Jeni Klugman says that regularization of migrants is fundamental to increased human development.
SOUNDBITE (English) Jeni Klugman, Director of the Human Development Report Office, UNDP:
Irregular status brings enormous costs for many migrants. In many countries, theyre denied access to services as a result. Theyre vulnerable to exploitation by employers because theyre fearful of deportation. It also creates costs for the community at large because there are numbers of people there who are not present normally, and that can undermine the sense of the rule of law. So regularization is very important.
SOUNDBITE (English) Jeni Klugman, Director of the Human Development Report Office:
Thailand I think is a good example of the where its by no means one of the richest countries in the world, but its clearly making an effort to insure that the people who come have access to services.
The report argues that large gains to human development can be achieved by lowering barriers and other constraints to movement and by improving policies towards those who move.
Migration can raise a persons income, health and education prospects, according to the Report. Most importantly, being able to decide where to live is a key element of human freedom.
SOUNDBITE (Thai) Pikul Klom, Cambodian migrant:
First, I came and worked illegally, but afterwards I enrolled in the foreign employee registration to become legal.
Overall, the Report says, the impact of migrants on public finances both national and local is relatively small, while there is ample evidence of gains in other areas such as social diversity and the capacity for innovation.
SOUNDBITE (Thai) Amporn Nitisiri, Thailand Department of Labor and Welfare:
Thailand strongly believes in and applies to a policy of human rights and human dignity. We believe that if we take care of good migrant workers, we will get a better workforce and higher quality products. Nearly one billion, or one out of seven of the worlds people are migrants.
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