RIYADH: As the diplomatic relationship between the Kingdom and Thailand, which was fully restored in January, continues to develop, skilled workers in the hospitality, healthcare, and food and beverage sectors will soon begin to arrive in Saudi Arabia, according to Thai Minister of Labor Suchart Chomklin.
“In the past, Thai workers in Saudi Arabia were mainly unskilled workers,” he told Arab News. “Nowadays, however, Thailand has changed its policy to one of sending semi-skilled and skilled workers.”
Speaking on Monday after roundtable talks held at the Federation of Saudi Chambers, the minister said that Thailand aims to export labor to fill jobs in various industries in the Kingdom, covering a wide range of positions.
Thailand aims to export labor to fill jobs in various industries in Saudi Arabia. (Photo by Abdulaziz Alnoman)
“Thai workers have many skills that are very acceptable to the international standards and they are very hard working,” Suchart said. “We believe that Saudi Arabia should be able to receive many quality Thai workers.”
He gave some examples of the types of roles that Thai workers are expected to fill in the Kingdom.
“There are many demands in Saudi Arabia for high-skilled workers in industries such as hotels, as receptionists, and in healthcare and rehabilitation services, for nurses,” he said.
The minister said that progress has already been made since a visit by Thai Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha to Riyadh in January, during which he held talks with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.
“The Thai government has developed an electronic application process to receive requests from Thai workers who want to work in Saudi Arabia,” he said.
“As of now there are more than 1,000 workers in Thailand who (have said they want) to work in Saudi Arabia and we expect that there will be demand for chefs, cooks, healthcare workers and in other service sectors.”
The expected timescale for Thai workers to begin arriving in the Kingdom is yet to be confirmed. Suchart said that general labor requirements were discussed during the roundtable discussions, along with the procedures for supplying Thai workers.
“We are waiting for the public sector to contact us to share the demands of Thai workers, and which occupations and which sectors are most in demand in Saudi Arabia,” he said.
He also emphasized the importance of meeting salary expectations among Thai workers interested in coming to the Kingdom.
“The most important thing they need is the same salary for their work; they are skilled workers so they expect the base salary (to be) at least the same as in your neighboring countries; for example, the UAE,” said Suchart.
The minister added that the Thai Embassy in Riyadh will serve as a point of contact for requests for Thai workers. In addition, the Thai Ministry of Labor has created a skills-development department to provide vocational training.
“Many Thai workers are interested in working in hotel services in Saudi Arabia,” said Suchart.
He added that by providing skilled labor, Thailand aims to contribute to the development of the Kingdom by helping to achieve the objectives of Saudi Vision 2030.
To accomplish this, he said, “service-sector workers will be needed and we are even looking at the main industry of Saudi energy. I think we can focus on tourism and the financial sectors as well.”
Suchart also highlighted the role that Thai workers can play in the ongoing development of the tourism sector in the Kingdom through the building of new resorts and hotels.
“We think that construction workers will be needed as well as construction services,” he said.
