The committee recommended increases of 5-6 baht to between 313 baht ($10.33) and 336 baht ($11.09) across Thailand’s 77 provinces, expected to start from January, Suthi Sukosol, permanent secretary of the labour ministry, told reporters after chairing a panel meeting.
The daily minimum wage in industrialised Chonburi province and the resort island of Phuket would be raised by 1.8% to 336 baht, according to the recommendation by the committee, a tripartite body of government, workers and employers.
For the capital Bangkok and nearby provinces, the minimum wage would be increased by 1.8% to 331 baht per day.
The increases would put Thailand among countries with the highest minimum monthly wages in Southeast Asia.
In Vietnam, a regional manufacturing base, the minimum wage ranges from about $125.89 to $180.21 per month. But from 2020, it will increase by 5.14% to 5.74%.
The Thai committee's recommendation must be approved by the cabinet - a formality - before it can take effect. Thailand is a regional manufacturing and export hub for global carmakers and is among the world’s top exporters of rice and rubber.
(Reporting by Panarat Thepgumpanat and Satawasin Staporncharnchai; Writing by Orathai Sriring; Editing by William Maclean)
