Author: parinyawatk

Since the commencement of the Trade Secret Act in the middle of 2002 the business community in Thailand has increasingly used non-disclosure agreements and clauses in work rules and employment agreements with their staff. These agreements and clauses generally prohibit employees with access to trade secrets from disclosing such information to other parties. Along with this growth in non-disclosure clauses and contracts, employers are also protecting their trade secrets by using non-compete clauses which aim to stop employees from engaging or working with any employer that competes with their ex-employer’s business. The reason behind this growth in non-compete clauses is that many employers fear that if their employees resign and then join a competitor, their ex-staff will disclose their trade secrets which could cause them significant commercial damage. Meaning of Trade Secret: In order to understand the rationale behind the […]

During the term of an employment contract the working conditions of the employee may undergo significant changes, for instance an employee could be promoted, demoted, have a pay rise, be seconded to a new role or otherwise have their work responsibilities adjusted to fit their employers operational needs. Given that an ongoing employment contract may be in effect for a long period of time, its provisions may need to be amended to reflect these different circumstances, however, this need to amend gives rise to an important legal issue as to how can such changes to an employment contract be compliant with Thai labor law. Background to Employment Contracts and Working Conditions: To begin with, it is necessary to examine the legislative background of employment contracts and working conditions. In relation to work condition agreements, section 5 of the Labour Relations […]

Increasing the minimum wage to be 300 Baht per day across all provinces in Thailand coupled with the impending commencement of the Asian Economic Community (AEC) in 2015 will change the operating environment for many businesses in Thailand, the above mentioned wage change will be particularly significant as salary payments are often the main operating expense of a business. Not all businesses in Thailand will be able to shift this additional burden onto their customers, hence some of them will need to improve or streamline their businesses in order to be able to compete with the foreign companies who will become increasingly competitive under the AEC. To face this hurdle, many business owners will likely consider cutting unnecessary expenses; those who operated through the 1997 economic crisis will likely have considerable experience in overcoming such challenges and should be able […]

  Introduction: In Thailand, the key pieces of legislation dealing with the issue of product liability are: 1. Liability for Damages Arising from Unsafe Product Act (2008) otherwise known as the Product Liability Act (2008); and 2. The Consumer Cases Act (2008). The Thai Civil and Commercial Code is also relevant as it supplements the Product Liability Act in relation to compensation to injured persons. Product Liability Act (2008) Purpose of the Act The main purposes behind this legislation were to: a. Instill greater consumer confidence in products in Thailand and to better protect the public from dangerous or defective products; b. Simplify the previous legal approach to product liability which was overly complicated and make it easier for injured persons to receive justice and fair compensation. Scope of the Act This Act offers consumers considerable protection given that it […]

Early Retirement   The term “early retirement” is widely used in the workplace as it is one of the most common methods by which many employers terminate their employees’ employment contracts. Early retirement offers employers a means by which they are able to propose to certain employees to retire earlier than the company’s work regulations stipulate. Early retirement programs are often utilized to meet employers’ needs, such as cutting labor expenses or the reorganization of a business in order to ensure its long term feasibility. In many cases, employees who have worked for a long time may be tired of their job but will remain in their position until official retirement age because they need severance pay or other benefits before they are willing to leave. The ‘early retirement’ option offers a mutually beneficial solution for both employers and employees […]

  Unfair Termination (Part 2)     This article continues on from Unfair Termination (Part 1) by examining various other situations involving termination and discussing whether they are deemed to be unfair by the Supreme Court of Thailand.   5.Case Study 5 – Termination Due to Reorganization of a Business   With regard to termination based on the reorganization of a business, this reason has frequently been used by employers to justify terminating staff when their business was suffering and was in trouble. There are several cases in which the Supreme Court has specified criteria for determining whether a termination for this reason is unfair or not, these criteria are as follows: –If a business suffers financial losses which will mean that the employer cannot operate their business in the long term and as a result it then reorganizes the […]

    Unfair Termination (Part 1)   Most employers misunderstand the law relating to terminating staff and as such are of the opinion that if they pay severance pay to a terminated employee according to the Labor Protection Act, they can terminate an employment contract for any reason whatsoever. Such a misunderstanding of the law can lead to an employer being subject to considerable legal liability as an effected employee may be able claim compensation from the employer on the grounds of unfair termination or in some cases an employer may be forced to recall a terminated employee back to work again. There are many issues which need to be examined when determining what constitutes an unfair termination, however in this article we will mainly focus on judgments of the Supreme Court in order to provide guidance on the issue. […]