The Thai Frontline Physician Union has submitted a formal open letter to the National Human Rights Commission, alleging widespread human rights violations and "modern slavery" conditions affecting healthcare personnel across Thailand's public health system.
The complaint, filed in response to the recent death of a nurse who worked until her final days, argues that this tragic incident represents only one of countless cases stemming from systematic oppression of healthcare workers that has persisted for over a decade.
Major Grievances Outlined
The union, representing all categories of healthcare workers including physicians, nurses, medical technicians, radiological technicians, ward assistants, and pharmacists, identified three critical areas of concern:
Excessive Working Hours: Many healthcare workers are required to work up to 100 hours per week, with some working continuously for over 72 hours without sleep. Despite existing guidelines stipulating maximum hours, workers regularly exceed 80 hours weekly as standard practice.
Lack of Collective Bargaining Power: Workers cannot organize to demand their rights because relevant labor union legislation remains unenforced, leaving them powerless to negotiate and forced to simply follow orders from supervisors.
Unfair Employment Practices: State hospitals employ workers under precarious arrangements including temporary contracts, general labor positions, and outsourcing arrangements, denying them job security, legal protections, and in many cases paying wages below the legal minimum.
Violation of Constitutional Rights
The union argues these conditions constitute "modern slavery" and violate Article 4 of Thailand's 2017 Constitution, which guarantees that "the dignity, rights, freedoms, and equality of persons shall be protected."
The Thai Frontline Physician Union has called on the National Human Rights Commission to intervene and restore dignity and humanity to healthcare workers, describing them not as mere health production machines, but as human beings with families waiting at home and inherent human worth.