TY - JOUR
T1 - Labour migration and relocation of apparel production between Thailand and myanmar
AU - Mizuno, Atsuko
N1 - Funding Information:
This paper is part of a research project titled “Rethinking Migration Governance in the Mekong Region: From the Perspective of the Migrant Workers and Their Employers (FY 2015)”. The project is supported by ERIA and IDE-JETRO. An earlier version of this paper was presented at the Consortium for Southeast Asian Studies in Asia (SEASIA) conference at Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok, Thailand, on 16–17 December 2017. A working paper version of this study was published under the header “Rethinking Migration Governance in the Mekong Region: From the Perspective of the Migrant Workers and Their Employers” in the ERIA Research Project Report FY2017 no. 19 (Jakarta: ERIA and IDE-JETRO).
Publisher Copyright:
© 2020 ISEAS - Yusof Ishak Institute
Copyright:
Copyright 2020 Elsevier B.V., All rights reserved.
PY - 2020/8
Y1 - 2020/8
N2 - This paper analyses labour migration and relocation of apparel production between Thailand and Myanmar during the first half of the 2010s. For a long time, unskilled migrant workers allowed labour-intensive industries such as the apparel sector to flourish in Thailand. However, higher costs have gradually decreased the competitiveness of the Thai garment industry, forcing implementation of industrial upgrading measures and relocation of some labour-intensive production to neighbouring countries. Conversely, Myanmar, a major source of migrant workers for Thailand, has increased its apparel exports since 2010. Using empirical evidence, this study reveals that, first, the Thai apparel industry has significantly upgraded while employing foreign workers and second, production networks between the two countries have solidified over the past decade.
AB - This paper analyses labour migration and relocation of apparel production between Thailand and Myanmar during the first half of the 2010s. For a long time, unskilled migrant workers allowed labour-intensive industries such as the apparel sector to flourish in Thailand. However, higher costs have gradually decreased the competitiveness of the Thai garment industry, forcing implementation of industrial upgrading measures and relocation of some labour-intensive production to neighbouring countries. Conversely, Myanmar, a major source of migrant workers for Thailand, has increased its apparel exports since 2010. Using empirical evidence, this study reveals that, first, the Thai apparel industry has significantly upgraded while employing foreign workers and second, production networks between the two countries have solidified over the past decade.
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U2 - 10.1355/AE37-2D
DO - 10.1355/AE37-2D
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:85091351067
VL - 37
SP - 181
EP - 198
JO - Journal of Southeast Asian Economies
JF - Journal of Southeast Asian Economies
SN - 2339-5095
IS - 2
ER -