On June 11, 2022, Labour Minister Mr. Suchart Chomklin assigned the Assistant Minister from the Prime Minister’s Office performing duties for the Ministry of Labour, Mr. Suthi Sukosol, to preside over the opening ceremony and keynote speech at the OSH Avenue International Conference 2022 or OAIC. Deputy Permanent Secretary of Labour Ms. Bubpha Rueangsud also attended the opening ceremony. Mr. Waranon Pitiwan, Director of the Thailand Institute Of Occupational Safety And Health (TOSH), reported the event’s objectives at Samyan Mitrtown Shopping Center, Rama 4 Road, Pathumwan District, Bangkok.
Mr. Suthi said that the government under the leadership of Prime Minister and Minister of Defense General Prayuth Chan-ocha, the Ministry of Labour under the supervision of Deputy Prime Minister General Prawit Wongsuwan, and the Labour Minister Mr. Suchart Chomklin has an important policy in promoting occupational safety, health and working environment. The efforts are especially focused on creating awareness of safety at work. Thailand has direct experience with safety from the lessons of the COVID-19 situation. During the COVID-19 crisis, the Ministry of Labour took measures to mitigate the effects and heal workers, including informal workers and foreign workers. The measures included the provision of COVID tests, vaccinations for Section 33 insured persons, hospitalization, and remedies for the insured persons and businesses. These are factors that supported the manufacturing and export sectors to continue growing. The WHO and the international community recognized the efforts through strong cooperation with all sectors.
Mr. Suthi added that the organization of the OAIC on this occasion was considered a good start. It promoted sharing knowledge from famous speakers and exchanging knowledge with occupational safety and health networks. This shows our commitment and readiness to drive operations on occupational safety and health, raise the standard of work in this area, and follow the Safety Thailand policy set by the Ministry of Labour. Efforts aim to create continual awareness by creating a body of knowledge and spreading awareness on processes for safety practices and culture, following the government’s 20-year national strategy. The Ministry of Labour also has important policies for promoting competitiveness and developing labour skills to be quality workers. It has supported the policy of the country’s opening and the new economy by upgrading the development of various skills to create a workforce that can continuously adapt to work or new jobs. This is important due to changes and risks under the new world context to increase workers’ capacity and competitiveness in the world trade arena. It has also focused on raising the standards of occupational safety, health, and working environment following changing social, economic, and working styles.
Mr. Waranon Pitiwa, Director of the Thailand Institute Of Occupational Safety And Health (TOSH), said that this academic seminar was hosted under the theme of “Foresight for Safety at Work.” The event was divided into three parts. The first was on the safety of working life for society, the second part was a forum for sharing knowledge and experiences on safety at work, and the third part was a forum to exchange opinions and experiences on safety at work.
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Division of Public Relations