Swang Suksri, CPF’s senior vice president for human resources, said that the company is committed to following the new migrant labour decree. This is in line with CPF’s policy to treat foreign workers fairly and equitably.

“CPF has employed migrant workers who adhere to new migrant labour laws, so foreign workers confidently work with the company,” Suksri said in a press statement.

CPF now employs about 8,800 migrant workers or 18 per cent of its workforce of 50,000 workers. Of the total, approximately 6,300 are from Cambodia and 2,500 from Myanmar. They work at both feed mills and food processing plants.

The company says its recruitment policy has aligned with Thailand’s memorandum of understanding (MOU) with neighbouring countries. CPF also shoulders recruitment-related expenses including application fees charged by authorised agents in their respective countries, training fees, medical checkup fees and work licensing fees.

All the company’s migrant workers hold employee status, entitled to equal pay and benefits enjoyed by Thai workers. These include medical expenses, insurance and annual pay hikes. They are accommodated in the company’s dormitories and transported to work premises by company buses. The company uses translators on the grounds to provide assistance and advice to migrant workers. CPF was recently bestowed a certificate from Cambodia’s Ministry of Labour and Vocational Training, lauded as a model for best practices in the protection of migrant workers.

CPF also upholds the policy to have all in the supply chain adopt the Good Labour Practices (GLP), aiming to lift the work conditions of workers at animal farms to international standards. This serves as assurance that migrant workers throughout CPF’s supply chain enjoy equal and fair treatment, in line with international human rights standards.