After Thai floods, flow of migrant labor soars

Thailand’s ongoing recovery efforts from recent flooding have led to a resurgence in the country’s demand for labor, resulting in a record number of Cambodian migrants crossing the border in search of work, officials and experts said yesterday. Ouk Keorattanak, Banteay Manteay provincial deputy administration chief, said that last week about 1,000 Cambodians passed through the Poipet border checkpoint every day. “Last week, border police at the checkpoint noticed that about 1,000 Cambodian people crossed the border daily to work in Thailand,” he said, adding that normally these numbers vary between 200 and 300 migrants. “It is the first time that such a large number has crossed the border to work,” Mr Keorattanak said. Thai  labor demand has recovered strongly after the floods – which devastated large swathes of the country – receded, and Thai factories have reopened. But there are concerns that many of those crossing the border will enter informal channels of the Thai labor market…