Workers at a fish market in Samut Sakhon province, west of Bangkok (SOurce: AP)
Bangkok(VNA) –Thailand’s fisheries association plans to pay its employees through bankaccounts from April or May 2018 in an effort to prevent forced labour.
It is according to a report of the International Labour Organization (ILO) onconditions for fishermen and seafood processing workers in Thailand.
Before it begins enforcing the order, the association will need to issue newemployment contracts to migrant workers in the seafood and fishing industries.
Jarin Jakkaphak,Permanent Secretary of the Labour Ministry said that the policy to pay throughbank accounts will ensure greater transparency and fairness to workers in theseafood and fishing industry.
Thailand's seafoodindustry has come under scrutiny in recent years after investigations showedslavery, trafficking and violence on fishing boats and at onshore processing facilities.
According to an ILOofficial in Bangkok, deductions and delays in payments are hard to track when workersare paid in cash. The workers did not get pay slips, so they didn't know how muchthey were paid, how much was held back and how much they were still owed, saidthe official.
More than half theestimated 600,000 workers in the industries are registered migrant workers. Nearlya fourth of the workers ILO surveyed said they had experienced delayed andpartial payments.-VNA
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Thai Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Defence Prawit Wongsuwan has affirmed that the Government will promote measures against human trafficking in the context that the US and the EU are stressing the issue in Thailand.
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Vietnam plays an important role in Southeast Asia’s economic growth and is a key partner of her country in realising the shared vision of a peaceful, stable, and prosperous region, said Robyn Mudie, First Assistant Secretary of Office of Southeast Asia (OSA) – Southeast Asia Regional and Mainland Division at Australia’s Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT).
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The consumer index of the University of the Thai Chamber of Commerce (UTCC), fell to 51.7 in July from 52.7 in the previous month. The sluggish economy and the trade war, as well as high living costs, continue to undermine confidence, the university said.
Deputy Speaker of the Hungarian National Assembly Istvan Jakab expressed his hope for further deepening Hungary’s ties with ASEAN countries and called for their support for Hungary’s accession to the Treaty of Amity and Cooperation in Southeast Asia.
The 30-storey tower crumbled seconds after a 7.7-magnitude earthquake hit neighbouring Myanmar on March 28. The partially built high-rise, meant to house the State Audit Office (SAO), was the only building in Thailand to collapse, killing 89 people on the site, mostly construction workers.
Indonesia’s waste generation is projected to exceed 50 million tonnes in 2025. Of the total, more than 20 million tonnes could potentially enter the ocean through rivers, coastal areas, small islands, ports, and marine activities, and thereby, pose a risk to coastal ecosystems and marine biota.
Workers at a fish market in Samut Sakhon province, west of Bangkok (SOurce: AP) 
