An Approach to the Promotion of Welfare for Labors in the Informal Sector in Meaung District of Udon Thani Province

Abstract

The objectives of this study were to: 1) study the current state of benefits and welfare gained by labors in the informal sector in Meaung District, Udon Thani Province and their needs for benefits and welfare; 2) compare the benefits and welfare gain by these labors with different occupation; and 3) propose an approach to and a model for the arrangement of a standard benefit and welfare package for these labors.  The samples consisted of 120 labors in the informal sector in Meaung District, Udon Thani Province who had different occupation and 10 experts for in-depth interviews.  Data were analyzed by using frequency, percentage, mean, standard deviation and F-test.

The research findings showed that: 1) the benefits and welfare gained by these labors were rated at a moderate level. When considering at each aspect, security was rated the highest, followed by sanitation and hygiene, economy, stability, and education, respectively. As for their needs for benefits and welfare, these were rated at the highest level. When considering at each aspect, the highest aspect was stability which was followed by economy, security, sanitation and hygiene, and education; 2) when comparing the benefits and welfare gained by the labors with different occupation, it was found these were different at .01 level of statistical significance. When considering at each group of occupation, it was found that those in the production sector had received different forms of benefits and welfare from those working in the trading sector and sector, and those in the trading sector had received different forms of benefits and welfare from those working in the service sector. Moreover, it was also found that the labors in the agricultural sector had received different forms of benefits and welfare from those working in the service sector; and 3) in terms of the approach to and a model for arrangement of a standard benefit and welfare package for these labors, the study suggested that related government authorities should focus on each aspect of the benefits and welfare: for the benefits and welfare in terms of economy, they should provide knowledge on right protection and basic right for employment benefits and welfare; for the benefits and welfare in terms of stability, they should establish saving funds, social security funds, and an annual bonus scheme; for the education, they should provide a short-term training on labor laws and skill development laws; and for the security, they should provide proper sanitation and hygiene for workers, focus on providing appropriate workplace environment, arrange officers to check equipment and durable goods regularly, and provide protective equipment that were in a good state for these workers.