Thailand Transnational Migrant Labour Management Policy : From Xenophobia to (Beyond) Human Rights

Abstract

This article is the result of a literature review of documents aimed at providing basic knowledge about migrant labor management policies. The article begins by examining concepts found in debates about transnational migrant labor management policies in an international context; I propose that these policies can be considered in binary oppositional terms. One is “Xenophobia,” in which people feel insecure about having migrant laborers working within their society. Countering it is the concept of “Human Rights.” Beyond this, I propose that some scholars have suggested analyzing the main issue of migrant labor by focusing on power relations in the relationship and negotiations of state, capitalism and labor. In the last section, I demonstrate in particular how Thailand’s transnational migrant labor management policies are related to this debate in an international context. I also suggest ways to use post-human rights approaches to better understand the problems of Thailand’s policies regarding this issue. In this way I hope to reveal alternative solutions to the problems associated with transnational migrant labor in the country.