The determinants of irregular migration of myanmar workers to Thailand

Abstract

Most research combines irregular migration with regular migration becausethe two phenomena are interwoven and because of the hidden nature and unreliableestimation of the data on irregular migration, therefore, there is a lack of widelyacceptable theoretical framework explaining irregular migration. The objectives ofthis study are to develop a conceptual framework for the determinants of irregularmigration of Myanmar workers to Thailand and to provide policy recommendations toaddress this problem. In this study, irregular migration refers to Myanmar workersthat enter Thailand through unauthorized channels without legitimate documents suchas a passport, visa, or work permit. The researcher used a qualitative research methodbased primarily on document review, direct observation, and semi-structure in-depthinterview of 47 key informants during April - August 2014. Various sources of dataand various groups of key informants (i.e. Myanmar workers, employers, governmentofficials, labor rights activists, Thai trade union leaders, academia, internationalmigration experts, and politicians) were utilized to help triangulate the informationand increase the validity of the information.

The researcher concludes that the factors that have most contributed toirregular migration of Myanmar workers to Thailand have been civil wars and limitedaccess to identity cards in Myanmar; labor shortages, particularly low-skill labor inthe informal sector in Thailand; migrant networks and underground entities whichhelp facilitate irregular migration; limited deterrence effects (low severity ofpunishment) and ability to pay bribes in order to get out of arrest; social norms andindividual attitudes among Thais and Burmese people which accept illegal border crossing; and the gap in Thailand’s policy, legislation, and institutions related to labormigration and the rights of migrant workers. The government policy in Myanmar,particularly access to citizenship and identity documents, border control, andregulation of recruitment agencies, are also important factors that contributes toirregular migration.

According to the findings of this study, the researcher has proposed lists ofpolicy recommendations to address irregular migration. These include the following:1) develop national labor migration policy, taking into consideration the long-termimpact of migration and inputs from all interest groups; 2) develop a clear policy onthe rights of migrant workers by taking into consideration international standards andensure that the rights of regular migrants are more than those of irregular migrants inorder to motivate law-abiding migrants (however, basic rights of migrant workersshould not be tied to legal status in order to reduce the incentive for illegalemployment); 3) revise the laws and regulations which dissuade regular migrantsfrom keeping their legal status and impose more stringent penalties for repeatviolators of the law; 4) develop a mechanism for assessing the labor market demandfor migrant workers; 5) develop a database on migrant workers and their dependentsin order to appropriately provide services and have more control over the undergroundeconomy; 6) develop an effective legal migration channel (to compete with irregularmigration) by increasing benefits (rights and protection), lowering costs (in terms ofmoney and time) and complexity, as well as increasing access to various groups ofworkers, particularly in the short-term, seasonal, or informal sectors; 7) investigateand prosecute underground entities (human smugglers, human traffickers, illegalmoney lenders, malpractice on the part of service providers) and corrupt officialsrelated to irregular migration, illegal employment, and bribery; 8) reevaluate policytools, such as regularization and soft-deportation, as to whether they are a magnet thatattracts more irregular migration by rewarding those that violate immigration laws;9) increase the efforts to raise awareness, particularly through migrant networks inThailand, to encourage legal migration; 10) increase cooperation with the Myanmargovernment particularly regarding border control and the return/deportation ofmigrant workers, identity cards, as well as regulating the employment serviceagencies involved in legal migration channels.