RCSD invites abstract submission for the symposium: “Is right-to-work working? One year of Thailand’s right-to-work policy for Myanmar refugees” to be held on 28 October 2026 at the Faculty of Social Sciences, Chiang Mai University, under the Advancing Knowledge on Forced Displacement in Southeast Asia project supported by the International Development Research Centre (IDRC) of Canada.
On 26 August 2025, Thailand’s Cabinet approved measures enabling eligible displaced persons from Myanmar living in nine temporary shelters along the Thai-Myanmar border to seek lawful employment in Thailand. The policy marked an important shift from the long-standing exclusion of camp-based refugees from formal employment. It was designed both to respond to labor shortages in sectors and locations where employers face recruitment difficulties, to respond to the humanitarian aid cut, and to strengthen refugees’ capacity for self-reliance.
The policy applies to displaced people from Myanmar residing in nine temporary shelters across Mae Hong Son, Tak, Kanchanaburi, and Ratchaburi provinces, which host about 80,000 people, including an estimated 42,000 of working age. The policy framework permits eligible individuals to apply for authorization to leave the shelters and to obtain work permits valid for up to one year, subject to specified administrative, health-insurance, employment, and mobility requirements. Implementation began in October 2025 through a process involving employer selection, applications to provincial employment offices, authorization to leave the shelters, health checks, health-insurance registration, and work-permit issuance. The scheme is available in 43 provinces, while employment remains limited to occupations open to foreign workers under Thai law; occupations reserved for Thai nationals remain excluded.
The first anniversary of the Cabinet resolution presents a timely opportunity for a public, policy-oriented, and evidence-based symposium. The symposium aims to gather Thai authorities, labor-rights actors, academia, researchers, civil-society organizations, and humanitarian and development agencies to assess the first year of implementation. The symposium will commemorate the one-year anniversary of the right-to-work policy and will provide a platform to review policy implementation, share evidence and lived experience, identify barriers, and develop practical recommendations.
The symposium will examine these central questions:
- Has the policy translated formal permission into accessible, safe, voluntary, and decent work for camp-based Myanmar refugees?
- What does one year of experience with the policy implementation and the lived experience of refugee individuals and families inform about the gaps?
- How can Thailand ensure that labor-market inclusion supports refugee protection, reduces exposure to exploitation, respects freedom of movement and choice of employment, and contributes constructively to local economies and host communities?
- How has this policy ensured the self-reliance of refugee individuals and families?
- How can this policy support refugee families’ gradual integration into Thai society?
Submission guidelines
The symposium will consider only research that is completed or nearing completion. Compile the following two parts into a Word file and upload it with the application form.
- Extended Abstract
Abstract proposals should be 500 words in English and should include
• Presentation title
• Presenter name(s)
• Institutional or organizational affiliation, if any
• Email address
• Background, problem statement, or policy issue
• Main research question or argument
• Methodology
• Main findings, emerging insights, or anticipated contribution
• Policy recommendations or advocacy implications - Presenter(s) short biography
A short bio of presenter(s), maximum of 150 words.
Symposium date: October 28, 2026
Submission deadline: October 2, 2026
Notification of acceptance: October 7, 2026
Submit your abstract online here
Funding Support
Limited domestic travel funding is available for accepted presenters. Please indicate in your application whether you need travel support or have secured your institutional funding to participate in the symposium.
For further inquiries, contact Dr. Andrew Wai Phyo Kyaw or RCSD.