Transcript of the above video:

As the title of this video suggests, we are discussing work authorization associated with Lao, Myanmar and Cambodian Nationals here in the Kingdom of Thailand. ‘Why are you doing this Ben?’ Is probably a question some folks are asking, especially folks who are sitting there saying hey I doubt there's a lot of Lao or Myanmar citizens or Cambodians watching your videos. Probably you are right. Actually, the reason for this video is kind of to do a little bit of a comparison and show that yes very much so, circumstances will dictate how what authorization is processed here in Thailand and I will note that in this video because there is sort of a different process for dealing with that for folks who are from Myanmar, Laos or Cambodia.

I thought it was making this video after reading a recent article from the Pattaya Mail, that is pattayamail.com, the article is titled: Cambodian man's career success story in Pattaya. A really interesting story, a really interesting article. I urge those who are watching this video go check that out. It follows an immigrant, a Cambodian man here in Thailand. I thought it was rather poignant being an immigrant myself. It was really interesting to watch this person's progression and how they have come to live and make a life in Thailand. Really good article. There was a really good excerpt, I am going to quote a small excerpt from that article for purposes of this video. Quoting directly: "In 2017, the Cambodian and Thai Government signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to determine the employment conditions of guest workers from Cambodia, Myanmar and Laos. Den noticed that the Pattaya headquarters for the Foreign Workers Employment Agency, responsible for registration and award of labour permits, was nearby in Jomtien Soi 5 and adjacent to the Immigration Bureau. He was appointed as an administration assistant and quickly mastered the documentary registration procedures which are required for Department of Employment pink cards which guarantee rights such as access to the Thai Public Health System." 

So, the point of this video is that Lao, Cambodian and Myanmar Nationals deal with their Work Permits and Visa issues in a very different way than so-called Farang, Westerners here in Thailand are going to be dealing with their Visa and Work Permit issues. I bring this up because look it's a very clear example of how different circumstances can kind of dictate different outcomes. The laws that are promulgated regarding work authorization apply to everybody. They apply to all foreign nationals in Thailand. We saw this with the Emergency Decree in 2018 which actually seemed to be kind of designed more or less for Myanmar workers, Cambodian or Lao workers but it had ramifications for Work Permit holders throughout the country of all nationalities because it did some things like got rid of being sort of tied to one address or the job description stuff became a little more nebulous, a little easier to deal with. Generally they kind of made the system better when they dealt with it under that Decree but it was primarily being done to deal with one section of the labour population in Thailand, foreign labour population specifically, rather than to deal with the whole thing but it had broader implications. Again the point of this video is to understand, different people are going to process their Work Permits in Thailand differently.