BANGKOK - Now that China has shifted its focus to a "new normal," a slower but more sustainable rate of economic growth, Southeast Asian countries are expected to be the next driving force for high-paced growth.
However, some countries in the region may soon find that their economies cannot grow as expected, as their workforces have not been expanding as much as hoped.
Mahachai, a harbour city in the suburbs of Bangkok, is home to 200,000 to 300,000 Myanmar people, who work at marine product processing plants or other businesses. The town has so many Myanmar food stalls catering to Myanmar workers that a visitor might feel as if they were in Myanmar.
A 31-year-old worker from Dawei, a town close to Myanmar's border with Thailand, said he had no plans to go back to his home country, because in Thailand he can earn much more than he can at home. Working at a fish cannery from evening to early morning, he earns a daily wage of 300 baht ($9.4). Although the Myanmar government plans to build a huge industrial park in Dawei, he intends to stay in Thailand, where the pay will still be better.
The Myanmar worker may become a successful example of an immigrant worker in the region, once the ASEAN Economic Community, an economic bloc formed by the 10 members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, is launched at the end of this year. However, the truth is that the worker is only attracted by the higher wages that businesses in Thailand are willing to pay to retain competent workers.
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