Thread: Severance Pay and Teaching in Thailand

According to Thai labor law (chapter 11), legally employed people in Thailand are entitled to severance pay. Technically, an employer shall compensate an employee whose employment has been terminated if the employee has worked for an unbroken period of 120 days as follows:

If employee has worked for 120 days but less than 1 year: 30 days' wages

If employee has worked for 1 year but less than 3 years: 90 days' wages

If employee has worked for 3 years upwards: 180 days' wages

If employee has worked for 6 years but less than 10 years: 240 days' wages

If employee has worked for 10 years upwards: 300 days' wages

My question is, does this apply to foreigners who renew their contracts yearly?

Originally Posted by wangsuda

My question is, does this apply to foreigners who renew their contracts yearly?

Good question, I have thought of the same...
Let's say you've had the same work permit with the same school/company, then no matter about if it's a yearly contract you can show you've worked at that place for the given amount of years you are claiming for....

Originally Posted by Makaveli

Let's say you've had the same work permit with the same school/company, then no matter about if it's a yearly contract you can show you've worked at that place for the given amount of years you are claiming for....

Now this is the crux of the matter right here. Same WP and visa, same school/company name, but yearly contracts. What happens? Is an employee allowed to seek compensation? Especially if one or both parties decide not to sign another contract?

Although I've heard stories of people taking things to the Labour Board and coming out with a positive result, I've talked to zero people who have actually done it.

I guess if a person had a close friend who was a lawyer and would purue the case for no cost, then one might get somewhere.

I tend to feel it might be pretty time consuming though.

Now this is the crux of the matter right here. Same WP and visa, same school/company name, but yearly contracts. What happens?

And one would have to think that the Labour Board has already dealt with a number of these, so there are going to be precedents.

Lawyers business.

Messy and time consuming.

Anyway, good thread. Good information.

Originally Posted by wangsuda

employer shall compensate an employee whose employment has been terminated

It seems that this is the sticking point - if you are fired or laid off mid contract, you can apply or get severance. If a decision is made NOT to offer you a new contract (but you completed your last contract) then no deal. If anyone has any other information on this, please post it!

Originally Posted by wangsuda

Especially if one or both parties decide not to sign another contract?

i'm no lawyer but it would seem to me that it would depend on what's in the contract. otherwise, once the contract is finished, why would the employee have an exception of continued employment?

my wife's been doing some translation work for foreigners down in the labor office. i'll ask her to check it out.

A teacher was let go at my university after a series of 6 two year contracts. He received the compensation due. 10 months. This is a private university. He did not receive it until after he said he would go to the labor courts.

Originally Posted by wangsuda

Same WP and visa, same school/company name, but yearly contracts. What happens? Is an employee allowed to seek compensation?

A friend recently took an agency to court after they didn't renew his yearly contract. and he won and got severance pay.

If you quit: no severance.

If you're not offered another contract: you get severance.

Originally Posted by aging one

A teacher was let go at my university after a series of 6 two year contracts. He received the compensation due. 10 months. This is a private university. He did not receive it until after he said he would go to the labor courts.

Originally Posted by po3try

A friend recently took an agency to court after they didn't renew his yearly contract. and he won and got severance pay.

Originally Posted by bet

If you quit: no severance.


If you're not offered another contract: you get severance.

Looks like we have an answer. Thank you, gentlemen.