BANGKOK, June 9 (Xinhua) -- Thailand's employment continued to contract in the first three months of 2025 as jobs in the farm sector declined for the fifth consecutive quarter, official data showed on Monday.
The Southeast Asian country's labor force dipped 0.5 percent year-on-year to 39.4 million individuals in the January-March period, driven by a 3.1 percent contraction in agricultural employment, according to the National Economic and Social Development Council (NESDC).
Meanwhile, employment in non-farm sectors edged up 0.5 percent due to expansion in transport and storage services, which recorded a 4.5 percent increase, followed by a 3.5 percent gain in accommodation and food services, despite a slowdown in tourist numbers, the NESDC said in a statement.
The kingdom's unemployment rate stood at 0.88 percent in the first quarter, down from 1.01 percent registered in the same period last year and representing around 360,000 unemployed individuals, the state economic planning agency said.
The reduction in unemployment was particularly noticeable among those with a high school education or less, while the number of long-term unemployed also dropped 14.3 percent to about 68,000 individuals, said NESDC Secretary-General Danucha Pichayanan.
Looking ahead, key issues that require close monitoring include the survival of small and medium-sized enterprises through innovation and technology adoption, guaranteeing severance pay for laid-off workers, and the potential unemployment risks for recent graduates, Danucha told a news conference. ■
