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View all search resultsRural workers in Laos more likely to quit jobs
More than 20 per cent of rural workers often change their place of work, seeking jobs that pay well and are more appropriate to their peripatetic lifestyle
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ore than 20 per cent of rural workers often change their place of work, seeking jobs that pay well and are more appropriate to their peripatetic lifestyle.
President of the Lao Federation of Trade Unions (LFTU) Khamla Lorlonesy talked to the media about the situation last week on the occasion of International Labour Day.
Some 700,000 workers are employed by various businesses in Laos.
'Twenty to 25 per cent of people move from one workplace to another every month,' Mr Khamla said.
He cited unfavourable working conditions and workers' traditional lifestyle as the principle reasons for the moves.
He said workplace oppression involved such things as an employer dictating the amount of overtime to be worked and demanding it for several consecutive days, holidays only being possible after completion of customer orders, cheating on the payment of wages and other allowances, and lack of welfare support.
The relative ease of finding new jobs that did not require hard work encouraged frequent moves, Khamla said.
He said many workers would leave a job not caring whether the employer would pay them the wages and compensation due because they could always go back home and make a living from agriculture.
'If they are not satisfied with their job they will leave it and find a new one. If they cannot find a new one they will return home because they can catch fish or harvest something to eat from the forest,' Khamla said.
The LFTU president also commented on the behaviour of some workers, which he said created problems for businesses. This included misconduct with respect to work discipline, such as absence for two or three consecutive days due to being hung over after exuberant celebration during the many festivals throughout the year.
He noted that most Lao workers come from rural areas where they can enjoy an easy if less productive lifestyle.
He could not say how long this situation would last, but promised that the Federation would continue efforts to educate people so they learned technical skills and social sensibilities that would enable them to fully participate in the country's development and improve their quality of life.
Khamla also discussed the recent minimum wage increase, saying that some businesses have yet to raise wages from the former monthly minimum of 625,000 kip, which the government announced at the start of 2012, while the rise to 900,000 kip became effective on April 1 this year. (***)
