Historically, Thailand’s labour force participation was always greater than the demand for labour ( gure 52).
Given this circumstance, the Thai labour market for a long time experienced a surplus of labour. Under the market mechanism, the excess supply of labour prevents an increase in the average wage rate unless the economy spectacularly grows or price levels substantially skyrocket.
In other words, with a labour surplus, Thai employers have more bargaining power to choose workers and maintain a wage rate that is preferential towards them (Ministry of Labour, 2009).