Mr. Pichet Thongphan, Director-General of the Department of Employment, revealed that following public reports of foreign workers transporting goods at a transport shop without work permits and waiting for customers in walkways and stairwells in commercial buildings in the Pratunam area and surrounding areas on Phetchaburi Road, Thanon Phaya Thai Subdistrict, Ratchathewi District, Bangkok, the Department of Employment has been informed of the incident and has immediately ordered officials from the Central Employment Registration and Jobseeker Protection Division to conduct an inspection. This is to ensure compliance with the law and to prevent impacts on Thai employment opportunities.

During the inspection, officials found four male Myanmar workers packing goods for transport to a warehouse without passports or work permits. One employer was also found to be in violation of the law. Officers have charged and taken them into custody at the Phaya Thai Metropolitan Police Station. to proceed with legal action.

Mr. Pichet emphasized that foreign workers entering Thailand must comply with the law. Working without a work permit or working outside of their rights is punishable by a fine of 5,000 to 50,000 baht and deportation to their country of origin. They will also be unable to apply for a work permit until two years after serving their sentence. Employers/establishments that employ foreign workers without work permits or allow foreign workers to work outside of their rights are subject to a fine of 10,000 to 100,000 baht per foreign worker employed. Repeat offenses are punishable by imprisonment of up to one year or a fine of 50,000 to 200,000 baht per foreign worker employed, and a ban on employing foreign workers for three years. In fiscal year 2025 (from October 1, 2024, to September 15, 2025), employers will be inspected. A total of 76,725 establishments have been investigated, with 2,253 prosecuted, and a total of 944,965 foreign workers investigated, with 4,783 prosecuted.

If you encounter illegal employment of foreign workers or foreign workers engaged in work outside of their rights, please report it to the Central Employment Registration and Jobseeker Protection Division, Department of Employment, 4th Floor, Ministry of Labor Building, Tel. 0 2354 1729, or at any provincial employment office, Bangkok Employment Office Areas 1-10, or the Ministry of Labor hotline at 1506 (press 2), Department of Employment, or the Department of Employment hotline at 1694.

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