Business operators have submitted to the Labour Ministry requests for about 90,000 migrant workers under terms of the memorandum of understanding (MoU) signed with Cambodia, Laos and Myanmar last December.
Labour Minister Suchart Chomklin said the ministry had received 1,349 applications from employers seeking a total migrant workforce of 90,071.
Most requests, 72.2%, are for workers from Myanmar, while 20.9% are for those from Cambodia and 6.8% from Laos.
Mr Suchart said the first group of 158 Cambodian workers under the MoU has already been placed in the seven-day quarantine process in Sa Kaeo's Aranyaprathet district.
The migrant workers are fully vaccinated and have health insurance that covers Covid-19 treatment.
After passing the quarantine process, the workers will be taken to their workplaces via a sealed route, he said.
The Employment Department will work with provinces where workers clear immigration checkpoints to arrange quarantine facilities.
Employment Department Director-General Pairoj Chotikasathien said the department initially approved 220 Cambodian workers to enter the country but 35 of them are not yet ready to travel to Thailand.
Another 27 were refused a visa by Thai immigration when it was determined they had been blacklisted after illegally leaving the country when last allowed to work in Thailand.
He advised all migrant workers who want to work in Thailand to follow Thai laws pertaining to their work situation.
Wisut Sarika, human resource manager of the Panus Poultry Group which has a factory in Rayong, said his business had waited two years to get migrant workers from Cambodia and he welcomed the help.
He thanked the government for the MoU programme, saying his company also plans to recruit Myanmar workers.
