BANGKOK, June 4 – The Federation of Thai Industries (FTI) chairman Payungsak Chartsutipol on Friday voiced concern over efforts by political parties to count on wage hike policies to attract votes in the upcoming general election. He said the policy, if implemented without caution, would distort the wage market mechanism.
“FTI does not want any political parties to use the policy of wage increase to draw votes from the public because it can lead to a distortion of the market mechanism,” he said.
Normally, a minimum wage increase must be considered by the tripartite committee composed of the employee organization, employers, and the government.
No matter the result, he said, businesses are ready to comply since the decision is made based on the market mechanism and actual costs.
Should the wage increase as a result of the political campaign, he said, it would increase production cost, which would eventually lead to the product price hike.
The FTI chairman noted the minimum wage hike, which took place early this year, had pushed up product prices at a higher level than it should be when compared with the increased wage.
Currently, Mr Payungsak said, members of FTI employed more than 10 million workers, the highest in the country. Therefore, it did not want politicians to use wage hikes for their political campaigns. (MCOT online news)
