BANGKOK, 14 February 2013 The Small and Medium Enterprises Promotion Committee has agreed to implement special measures to help SME operators, who have been hit hard by the recent implementation of the 300-baht daily minimum wage policy.
Industry Minister Prasert Boonchaisuk said that Deputy PM and Finance Minister Kittiratt Na-Ranong has recently called for a meeting with the Small and Medium Enterprises Promotion Committee to discuss appropriate measures to help SME businesses, which are affected by the new daily minimum wage.
Mr. Prasert stated that the meeting agreed to allocate 310 million baht from its 2013 fund as financial assistance for hardest-hit entrepreneurs and another 200 million baht to be used as interest subsidy for some 6,300 SME business borrowers.
The daily minimum wage hike, which came into effect across the country at the beginning of this year, has driven business costs up considerably, especially in labor-intensive industries. The policy has also allegedly forced a number of small and medium enterprises to shut down.
The Industry Minister, however, conceded that the SME fund will only be of some help for those in need, while affected business operators are to look for ways to improve themselves in every possible way to make it through the current circumstances.
