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Getting a toehold in the jobs market on the paradise island of Phuket is an objective for many people from all over Thailand. People from overseas like the idea of working on the island, too.

Finding a Job in Paradise

Friday, November 30, 2007
THE EXPANDING tourist industry on Phuket is still driving rapid economic growth, opening up job opportunities and bringing job-hunters from all over Thailand.

But the Chief of Phuket Provincial Employment Office, Nataya 'Jane' Anudit, warns that not everybody finds the right job in paradise.

Young people who suddenly find themselves with degree may think it opens the door to a job at a good salary. But what employers really want are people with proven skills and experience.

The jobs market on Phuket is often a trade-off between those two points of view.

''Graduates looking for their first job shouldn't expect too much,'' she says. ''Working is something that needs to be learned as well. It's often better to settle for a less well-paid job just to get some experience. Don't aim too high, too soon.''

Employers also often had higher expectations than what could be achieved, she said. Training often needed to be part of the process. Getting a highly-skilled worker sometimes means providing the right environment for learning on the job.

A Thai graduate in any starting job on Phuket should not expect more than 7000 baht a month, Khun Jane said.

The minimum pay rate recently rose from 186 baht a day to 193 baht a day. Graduates should expect more because the base rate really only applies to laboring jobs.

An academic has called for the minimum wage to be lifted to 250 baht a day to alleviate the growing difficulty of the 'working poor' in keeping up with rises in prices and living conditions, which is even more pronounced on Phuket, one of Thailand's richest provinces.

Resorts offer a variety of positions, from admin jobs in accounting to gardeners and table waiters. The number of people lvinig on the island is officially about 313,000, but migrating workers probably double that number during the high season.

With the Phuket economy growing fast and the seasonal influx of tourists between November and March, vacancies varied depending on the time of year, too.

Khun Jane's suggestion is that students in their final year at university take time in the holiday season to work in the resorts part-time. That way, some skills can be acquired by the student in readiness for full-time work.

Having a supply of casual workers also meant resorts would not have to cut back on fulltime staff each low season.

Too-high expectations were often the cause of people changing jobs rapidly. Loyalty usually was the first priority, Khun Jane said. People who came to hold their organisation in high regard usually prospered and advanced more quickly.

Khun Jane said that the cyclical nature of the job seasons on Phuket was definitely flattening out. More jobs were becoming available all the year long.

The number of vacancies in the first half of the year fell by 61 percent between 2006 and 2007, with 12,330 jobs going in 2006 and only 4789 a year later. The high number in the first half of 2005, totslling 21,905, probably reflects the aftermath of the 2004 tsunami.

Despite the record year forecast by people in the tourist industry, job vacancies are much lower. This is probably because there is no longer a huge drop in the number of tourists in the traditional low season from April to October.

Bookings remain reasonably high, so more people are staying in work all year long.

Look for more articles explaining where the jobs are on this site every day.

Comments

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Seeking to find work.
My contact is
(242) 441-5776

Posted by David Nathaniel Hoyte on August 11, 2012 07:57


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