While the Thailand Social Security Office, under the direction of the Ministry of Labour, has been making efforts to expand social security enrollment among migrant workers, a number of migrants continue to be excluded from this system. Some are excluded as their employment sector are considered informal, while others are left outside the system simply because employers do not enroll them, which go against government policy. Such problem was reported by the media during the Covid-19 economic downturn, when many migrant workers were excluded from social protection during a very crucial time. 

MMN has long been advocating for more inclusive policies and stricter enforcement of the social security system for migrant workers in Thailand. In 2021, MMN organised an online workshop, inviting resource persons from the Thailand Social Security Office. During the discussion, the importance of closer dialogue and information sharing between migrants and the Social Security Office was highlighted. This would allow the Social Security Office to be better informed of challenges migrant workers face, and allow migrants to learn about the latest policies. 

With this in mind, in 2022, MMN and its member organisations, MAP Foundation, Foundation for Education and Development, and Raks Thai Foundation organised a series of consultations with migrants on access to social security. These consultations were held in Chiang Mai, Mae Sot, Phang Nga and Samut Sakhon from July to August 2022. Around 20 migrants from various employment sectors and representatives of provincial social security offices attended meetings in each location. During the consultations, migrants discussed the challenges they face regarding access to social security and they collectively identified priority issues and recommendations that they would like to bring forward to government representatives. This video presents highlights of these discussions.