The Economic and Social Impacts of Myanmar Migrant Workers on Local Labour Market in Thailand: A Case Study in the Trang Province

In the past few years, millions of Burmese laborers migrated to Thailand in order to get a better job. These migrant workers have been rendered a cheap labor source by employers. They are also engaged in dirty and risky jobs. Hence, employers prefer to employ them rather than the locals. Consequently, many Thai workers have been rendered jobless. This incident upsets the Thai workers. Furthermore, Thailand's income is stronger than that of Myanmar and that has attracted Burmese workers to Thailand. This inequality slows down the growth of Thai labor and increases the demand for cheap labor from Burmese. This study aims to examine the economic impacts of Myanmar migrant workers on local labor market in Trang, Thailand. It also investigates social impact caused by the presence of these migrants. The study further investigates the migrant policy efficiently of the Thai government. The study is situated within the framework of the push-pull and neoclassic economic theories. This study adopts qualitative method; both primary and secondary data were used. The primary data were obtained from in-depth interviews with 25 informants. Whereas, the secondary data were gathered from books, journal articles and online sources. The interviews were transcribed and thematically analyzed. The study found that, the employers prefer to employ migrant workers because they are willing to work longer hours than Thai workers. The study established that Myanmar workers have negative impact on Thai labor market. In view of this, the study recommends that the Thai government should formulate a policy that will checkmate illegal migrants from working in the country. It also suggests that, the government should make a policy that will encourage the use of local labor.