Songkhla province, Thailand – Fishermen’s Life Enhancement Centre shows it’s the first year of operation achieve its objectives to lift migrant workers’ quality of life, as a way to ensure fairness at workplace and sustainable living.  To be launched are the schemes to equip them with self-protection knowledge, offer education to their children and help them increase income.  

Mr. Ausman Lasoh, the Fishermen’s Life Enhancement Centre manager, said that the centre has achieved its goal in the first year of operations, serving 3,500 migrant workers and their families residing in Songkhla and nearby provinces. The workers sought assistance for treatment accordingly to human rights and international practices. Meanwhile, the center guided them to better understand their own rights and helped improve the quality of life. An education program was established for their children. The migrant-worker volunteer network was extended. 

The centre was officially opened in May 2016 through the collaboration of 5 public and private organizations – Fish Marketing Organization, Department of Labor Protection and Welfare, Family Planning Association of Thailand, Stella Maris Centre Songkhla and Charoen Pokphand Foods PLC (CPF).  Its objective is to lift the quality of life of migrant workers in the fishery industry and their families in a concrete and sustainable manner.  

“The achievements in the past year were attributable to the synergy of each organization’s strengths, to speed up our work in solving labor issues in the industry, preventing child labor and promoting a better quality of life. It is better than leaving the tasks to a single organization,” Mr.Lasoh said. 

The centre primarily aims to educate migrant workers on their rights and related laws as well as promote work safety and healthcare. Besides, the center ensures fair treatment to migrant workers and assists complainants. Most of the complaints involved their pays, which are lower than the agreed levels.  
 
On healthcare support for migrant workers and families, the center offers preliminary treatments, screens patients before forwarding them to hospitals, operates a mobile clinic, and hosts training on family planning, healthcare and disease prevention. 

Meanwhile, the center seeks to strengthen migrant workers themselves. In collaboration with network organizations, 24 volunteers, placed to watch against possible issues among the workers, were educated on related laws and rights protection. They were also trained to offer preliminary consultation to migrant workers, to reduce illegal and unfair labor use. Through the volunteers, migrant workers are also advised on health tips, to prevent communicable diseases.  

On education, the center establishes a pre-school learning program to 41 children, aged 4-13 years, and over 80% of the children have shown progress. Added to the program are a Khmer language course and a music course by volunteer teachers. The program’s goal is to improve the children’s literacy, ensuring their social integration and preparing them for primary-level education. In the 2017 educational year, 5 of the children passed entry tests and now study at a municipal school in Songkhla province.  
  
Mr.Lasoh added that the first-year evaluation results were taken into consideration for the setting of strategies in the second year, as the center aimed to adopt more aggressive activities to address 4 main issues: 1) raising awareness in entrepreneurs’ role and workers’ rights at workplaces in Songkhla province 2) improving the quality of life at workers’ workplaces and home 3) increasing children’s opportunity in obtaining education in Thailand and 4) promoting jobs to increase income and reduce household expenses and activities to strengthen bonds among migrant workers’ family members. Ultimately, the center sets sight to ensure workers’ and their families’ happy integration into Thai society and treatment accordingly to human rights best practices.   

Mr. Wuthichai Sithipreedanant, CPF Senior Vice President in Corporate Social Responsibility and Sustainability Development, noted that the center was one of the projects reflecting CPF’s commitment to collaborate with all parties in eliminating labor issues in the Thai fishery industry, despite slight involvement in the industry as CPF neither owned a fishing boat nor a fish meal plant. Besides, the company initiated the sustainable fish meal sourcing policy, to buy only products made from traceable by-product materials and only from fish meal plants with IFFO’s Responsible Supply certification

Meanwhile, the center seeks to strengthen migrant workers themselves. In collaboration with network organizations, 24 volunteers, placed to watch against possible issues among the workers, were educated on related laws and rights protection. They were also trained to offer preliminary consultation to migrant workers, to reduce illegal and unfair labor use. Through the volunteers, migrant workers are also advised on health tips, to prevent communicable diseases.  

On education, the center establishes a pre-school learning program to 41 children, aged 4-13 years, and over 80% of the children have shown progress. Added to the program are a Khmer language course and a music course by volunteer teachers. The program’s goal is to improve the children’s literacy, ensuring their social integration and preparing them for primary-level education. In the 2017 educational year, 5 of the children passed entry tests and now study at a municipal school in Songkhla province.  

Mr.Lasoh added that the first-year evaluation results were taken into consideration for the setting of strategies in the second year, as the center aimed to adopt more aggressive activities to address 4 main issues: 1) raising awareness in entrepreneurs’ role and workers’ rights at workplaces in Songkhla province 2) improving the quality of life at workers’ workplaces and home 3) increasing children’s opportunity in obtaining education in Thailand and 4) promoting jobs to increase income and reduce household expenses and activities to strengthen bonds among migrant workers’ family members. Ultimately, the center sets sight to ensure workers’ and their families’ happy integration into Thai society and treatment accordingly to human rights best practices.   

Mr. Wuthichai Sithipreedanant, CPF Senior Vice President in Corporate Social Responsibility and Sustainability Development, noted that the center was one of the projects reflecting CPF’s commitment to collaborate with all parties in eliminating labor issues in the Thai fishery industry, despite slight involvement in the industry as CPF neither owned a fishing boat nor a fish meal plant. Besides, the company initiated the sustainable fish meal sourcing policy, to buy only products made from traceable by-product materials and only from fish meal plants with IFFO’s Responsible Supply certification.