Nine out of 10 business representatives surveyed by the Thai Chamber of Commerce (TCC) oppose the government's policy to raise the minimum daily wage to at least 400 baht, pointing to the high cost.
Poj Aramwattananont, vice chairman of the Board of Trade of Thailand, said on Friday that the TCC recently surveyed 1,355 members of provincial chambers of commerce, foreign chambers of commerce, trade associations and agricultural, industrial and service organisations.
He said 93.9% of respondents disagreed with raising the minimum daily wage to 400-425 baht. They said the hike would increase operating costs, prices of goods and the cost of living, while the economy had not recovered.
The policy would raise the minimum wage by 25-30% from the present level of 325 baht in major provinces. The estimated cost was 21 billion baht a year, he said.
It would also affect national competitiveness because wages in Thailand were higher than those in many other Southeast Asian nations, he said.
The government should let the tripartite wage committees at provincial and national levels decide on the wage, Mr Poj said. Wages should be based on workers' skills and conditions in each province, he said.