DIFFERENT WORDS BUT THE SAME MEANING
Jobs for native English media professionals and journalists in Thailand are an increasingly rare thing.
In addition to the customary "Thai nationals only" I've recently noticed several other phrases appearing in recruitment ads that would prohibit non-Thais from applying, the latest being: "Applicants must be legally able to work in Thailand without the company having to provide a work permit." To legally work in Thailand all non-Thais must have a work permit which is supplied by the employing company.
There's also the more common: "Applicants must be able to speak and write Thai" which would prevent 95 per cent of more of expatriate candidates applying.
Another factor, highlighted in a story in The Bangkok Post today, is the increasing number of highly educated and overseas-experienced Thais that are coming home. These candidates are highly attractive to potential employers and, in the main, will still cost less to employ than an expat.
3 comments:
"Applicants must be legally able to work in Thailand without the company having to provide a work permit."
This would also include those with PR status.
I realise not many expats go the PR route, but there are a few. And most would be able to speak and write in Thai.
I can see where the companies would make that decision. I had my own company in anther SE Asian country and thought about doing the same here.
But the hurdles for Thailand are too much of a pain. You need hire five Thais for every expat? It gets expensive rather quickly.
I don't see why the Thai language requirement seems out of the ordinary. Even if you're publishing in English surely it is expected that you will be able to at least read what the major Thai language outlets (radio, tv, online, print) are saying. Furthermore, this makes carrying out interviews and other research much easier.
That's an interesting view 'anonymous'. I think you'll find that almost all of the English journalists working in Thailand have an extremely limited understanding on Thai.
In my own situation I know a little and reply on my Thai colleagues for their input as to what is being reported in the Thai language media.
One of the reasons I'm here is to provide the English language experience that my colleagues dn't have, and also to conduct interviews with people outside the Kingdom for our publications here.
That said I do understand there are legal issues as to why some Thai companies cannot employ non-Thai staff. That's not solely a Thailand issue though; it's common elsewhere in the world.
Post a Comment