Thailand’s bid to join the OECD is a real opportunity to advance labour rights, Thai trade unions told OECD delegates at a TUAC briefing on 16 October. At present, barely 1.3% of people in work belong to a union, and Thailand has ratified neither of the ILO conventions on freedom of association and collective bargaining, Nos. 87 and 98. Manop Kuerat, Secretary-General of the State Enterprises Workers’ Relations Confederation (SERC), set out workers’ priorities for the accession process, many of which were also highlighted in TUAC’s December 2025 assessment of labour rights in Thailand.
According to the accession roadmap for Thailand, the OECD will assess the country’s policies to ensure “full respect of labour rights”, with particular emphasis on fundamental labour rights, including the ILO Fundamental Principles and Rights at Work. TUAC urges the OECD to use the process to raise labour standards, including by ensuring that workers are free to join unions and bargain collectively.
The OECD is built on shared values of democracy, the rule of law and human rights. Respect for workers’ rights is key, and must be applied in full to Thailand, as to every other candidate.
Much of Thailand’s workforce sits outside the laws that protect those rights. Informal workers make up more than half of all people in work, while the highly fragmented labour relations framework leaves several categories of workers, including civil servants and platform workers, without full access to fundamental labour rights. Even where workers are covered by labour relations law, employers must certify the employment status of union founders before a union can be registered, which Thai unions say often leads to intentional delays by employers, discrimination and unfair dismissals. Those who do organise risk retaliation, SERC warned delegates. After a train derailment in 2009, 13 railway union leaders campaigned for locomotive safety checks to protect workers and passengers, and went on to face damages claims and criminal proceedings.
TUAC calls on the OECD to recommend that the Thai government ratifies Conventions 87 and 98 and guarantees those rights in practice. TUAC stresses that all workers, including public sector and migrant workers, should be able to form and join trade unions, and that protection against anti-union actions and discrimination should be strengthened. Thailand should also adhere to the OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises on Responsible Business Conduct and set up a National Contact Point with meaningful trade union engagement.
Read TUAC’s assessment of industrial relations and labour rights in Thailand here.
