Economic analysts fear that the Thai economy could be plunged into recession following the sudden departure of almost 190,000 Cambodians.
These immigrant workers, who often lack official work permits, have decided to leave the country after a warning from the new military junta that illegal immigrants face arrest.
In Rayong province, around 125 miles from the Thai-Cambodian border, many factories have stopped production after losing their Cambodian workers. Thailand has around 2.3 million legal immigrant employees, and another 800,000 immigrants are thought to be working illegally, according to the government’s employment department.
Suchart Chantaranakaracha, who is vice-chairman of the labour affairs department of the Federation of Thai Industries, said: “We cannot afford to lose immigrant workers; they are of vital importance to the expansion of our economy.”
Thailand’s once-thriving economy has suffered from nearly nine months of street protests; this has led to several Japanese companies threatening to pull out of the country. Thailand’s economy suffered a 2.1% quarter-on-quarter decline in the first three months of 2014, according to official estimates.