Migrant Agricultural Workers in Thailand (2020)

 

Thailand’s agriculture sector has long relied on the labour of migrant workers from neighbouring countries in the Greater Mekong Sub-region (GMS). This reliance has increased in recent years as Thailand’s rural population has moved to work in urban areas. Surprisingly, despite growing numbers of migrants travelling to work in Thailand’s agricultural sector, existing research on this group of migrants remains limited. Further understanding of the conditions and needs of this oft-overlooked group is needed, as they risk being insufficiently protected from mistreatment, abuse, and other rights violations taking place within the sector.

From 2017 to 2019, Mekong Migration Network (MMN), a sub-regional network of Civil Society Organisations (CSOs), conducted a collaborative research project focusing on the living and working conditions of migrant workers from Cambodia and Myanmar employed in Thailand’s agricultural sector. Focusing specifically on the experiences of workers on corn, cassava, palm oil, and rubber plantations, the research highlights their experiences and analyses gaps in existing protection mechanisms.

Click here to read the full report.