THAILAND Law and Practice Contributed by: Nam-Ake Lekfuangfu, Theeranit Pongpanarat and Panitan Pruksakasemsuk, Baker McKenzie (Bangkok)
1. Employment Terms 1.1 Employee Status
as changing the nature of the contract from a fixed term to an indefinite one. 1.3 Working Hours The employer is legally required to specify the start and end times of work in a day. Working hours must not generally exceed eight hours per day and 48 hours per week, except for certain hazardous works pre - scribed under the laws, where the maximum working hours are capped at seven hours per day and 42 hours per week. There is a legal exception if the employer cannot spec - ify the start and end time of work due to the nature or conditions of the work; such work can be exempt from the exact start and end times for working hours, as long as they do not exceed eight hours per day and 48 hours per week. The LPA does not provide a definition or distinction for part-time or full-time contracts. All employees are treated similarly under Thai labour laws, regardless of their status as part-time or full-time employees. Overtime work is legally defined as working beyond the normal working hours. In general, the employee’s prior consent is required each time they are required to work overtime unless it is an emergency case, or unless the work is continuous and the stoppage will cause damage to that work. In any case, the total overtime working hours and holiday work shall not exceed 36 hours per week. The employee is entitled to overtime pay at 1.5 times the normal hourly wage for any overtime worked. For working overtime on a holiday, the rate is three times the normal overtime rate. 1.4 Compensation Under Thai labour law, the employer must pay at least the minimum daily wage rate announced by the Wage Committee from time to time, regardless of the num - ber of hours worked in each day. The Wage Commit - tee consists of representatives from the government, employers and employees, and generally announces the minimum wage for each province or a group of provinces.
There is no legal distinction between blue-collar and white-collar workers under Thai labour laws; both receive the same treatment and protection under the Labour Protection Act B.E. 2541 (1998) (LPA). However, there are requirements relating to out - sourced employees under the LPA, where a business operator could legally be deemed an employer of such outsourced workers if they require another person to dispatch such workers to perform any work within their manufacturing process or business operation under their responsibility. 1.2 Employment Contracts Employees may be hired indefinitely or for a fixed- term period, and there is no legal requirement for the contract for either to be in writing. The main differences between these two types of con - tracts are as follows. Indefinite-Term Employment Contract For this type of contract, an employer or an employee may terminate the agreement at any time by giving advance notice to the other party of at least one pay period as legally required, or a longer period if the par - ties agree otherwise. If the employer fails to provide notice in advance as legally required, they must make payment in lieu of the shortfall of the notice period required. Such employment contracts may simply specify the term to be indefinite, subject to termination by either party through providing notice in advance, and in reli - Conversely, a fixed-term employment contract auto - matically terminates upon the agreed expiry without requiring advance notice. This type of contract must specify the exact date or time period when the employment term will end. They should not include clauses for renewal or early termi - nation, as Thai labour courts interpret such provisions ance on grounds for termination. Fixed-Term Employment Contract
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