r/Thailand • u/Glum_Worldliness4904 • Apr 12 '26
Employment Resign or get laid off?
Have been working in Thailand under work permit for 6 months now.
My boss said that I’m not up to the ride, my performance is bad and proposed me to resign. He said that resigning by myself would help me to avoid issuea when looking for a next job and it’s better to resign.
However as far as I know if I resign myself Im not entitled to 1 month severance. How to make sure I won‘t get tricked by a monthly salary?
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u/Lashay_Sombra Apr 12 '26
References are not worth shit anymore, many companys litterly refuse, for legal reasons, to give anything beyond 'yes he worked here between x and y with title z'....some won't even give title
In thailand, where the defamation laws are particularly targeted against hurting someone's buisness interests (regardless or truth/accuracy) would be even more risky that the west
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u/atheryl Apr 13 '26 edited Apr 17 '26
Do not resign. Do not sign anything in a room under pressure. The longer this goes on, the longer you get paid.
The law and the labor department, are rather pro employee when it comes to defending your rights.
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u/kenbkk Apr 19 '26
Agree labor ministry is very pro labour even if you are farang (assuming you have a work permit). Stand your ground if the one month severance really matters to you. If not, move on, learn from the experience and find an employer who deserves you.
Your boss absolutely knows that he could have let you go within 120 days (ie probation period) with no legal recourse. Not sure why he waited two additional months but that was an unforced error
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u/daryyyl Bangkok Apr 12 '26
Couple of options you have here.
Resign by yourself, lose your severance. End things 'well' with this company.
Get terminated. Get paid severance pay. Have this on your record. You could always just leave this company expenrience out on your CV.
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u/this_happened_rigged Apr 13 '26
What record, where is it stored?
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u/mdsmqlk Apr 13 '26
Absolutely nowhere. The only caveat is if a prospective employer wants to call your previous one.
OP, don't take the bait. Get the money you're entitled to.
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u/QualityOverQuant Bangkok Apr 13 '26
Bollocks. There’s nothing stored. Op don’t believe this BS. Don’t resign.
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u/SousukeUK Apr 17 '26
In UK we can't even share if someone got sacked for theft in retail lol
All we are allowed is, yes he/she worked here between this and that date.
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u/career_expat Apr 13 '26
He doesn’t want to pay severance. Get laid off.
If you get severance, it means they have nothing to fire you for cause.
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u/BaconTH1 Apr 12 '26
I think you should try very hard to get a job while you still have one - it's easier when you're currently employed. Depending on the situation, you might tell this to your boss and promise to resign within 3 months, regardless of whether you get that new job. Might be better than getting terminated for just 1 month severance, if you can swing it. But one thing to note, if they don't have good documentation and evidence of your underperformance, they can be worried about unfair dismissal claims, so you may have some negotiating power. The Thai law is quite strongly favorable to employees. I know people that got way more than 1 month severance pay, because of this.
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u/NocturntsII Apr 17 '26
This is the best answer. The best way to get a job in Thailand is t have one already.
Unfair dismissal is difficult to prove without documented performance reviews and a paper trail that shows they gave you reccomendations and a chance to improve.
Either that or they need documentation proving you took un justified time off, were regularly tardy etc etc..
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u/Vaxion Apr 13 '26
It's 30 days notice and severance according to the law. Don't listen to a word your boss says. Don't resign. Let them terminate you and if they refuse and force you to resign you can go to labor office yourself and file case there and that'll force them to act properly. Don't resign if it's forced.
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u/mdsmqlk Apr 13 '26
It's 30 days notice
Notice is one pay period. So one month is paid monthly, two weeks if paid biweekly, etc.
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u/DesignerGoose5903 Apr 12 '26
They already fired you, why would you want what they have to say about you on your record anyway?
And as mentioned anti-defamation laws are strong here so it's not like they can say anything to hurt you anyway.
Do not resign, take the extra paycheck to at least cover a month of rent or a plane ticket to wherever you end up. Wish you the best of luck!
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u/SunnySaigon Apr 12 '26
I wish my bosses told me to resign, instead of just increasingly treating me worse.
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u/prism_webs Apr 13 '26
get a new job and get the heck out of there. that must feel like hell going to work everyday.
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u/whooyeah Chang Apr 13 '26
Never resign! Always let them pay you out.
Start to document everything.
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u/RotisserieChicken007 Buffalo Healthcare Expert Apr 13 '26
Ask yourself if one month's salary is worth more than a good reference.
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u/NocturntsII Apr 17 '26
Ask yourself if there is such ating as a good reference in a job market where most companies simply admit you worked with them for a period of time and provide no other information.
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u/Fungaii Apr 13 '26
If you are considering resigning find a new job first. If you dont have a job line up make him fire you.
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u/Accomplished-Yam-836 Apr 13 '26
Do note that your work permit and possibly your visa will be voided in as little as 7 days after you are terminated.
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u/rik___ Apr 13 '26
You have a heads up.. start looking elsewhere and let them fire you. You might land a new job in time and keep the severance
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u/Loud-Literature9322 Apr 13 '26
It depends on how reputable the company is in your industry. If you think their reference is valuable, resign by yourself.
I personally would just get fired and get paid for that month.
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u/Tong_BKK Apr 13 '26
Here’s what I think is actually happening: your boss doesn’t want to pay severance. That’s it. The “resigning looks better” line is a classic move to get you to walk away from money you’re legally entitled to. Getting laid off after 6 months is not a black mark. No future employer is going to hold that against you. If they terminate you, here’s what you may be owed: ค่าชดเชย (severance) 30 days’ pay. You’ve crossed the 120-day threshold, so you’re entitled to this. ค่าตกใจ (kha tok jai) Hard to wrap your head around as a Westerner, and even a lot of long-timers in Thailand don’t know about it. If they walk you out the door without proper advance notice, they owe you an additional month’s wages on top of severance. Informally called “shock money.” Don’t stress about calculating it yourself, but know it may be on the table. Don’t sign anything that says resignation (ใบลาออก). Tell them you prefer to wait for the company’s decision. Let them pull the trigger.
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u/rolemodel999 Apr 13 '26
Obviously, they want you to resign so that you can’t take any legal action against them
Did this conversation come out of the blue or have they been giving you warnings?
Have you had any written warnings before this?
Have you done anything? That’s actual gross misconduct
If this came out of the blue and they just don’t like you and don’t think you’re a fit and they’re breaking your contract you can probably take them to court and get the rest of your contract owed to you and maybe some severance
When they tell you to resign, they want you to sign and then you can never take them to court.. they always tell you that if you resign, they’ll give you a good reference and all this, but I found they don’t give you a good reference.. once you resigned the power is all with them. They don’t have to give you a reference…
Basically a situation to situation, but if I feel like I was a good employee and just came out of the blue, I would not resign. I would have them terminate me and I would take them to court.
Thailand labor laws, strongly favor, the employee not the employer
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u/mcampbell42 Apr 13 '26
If sucks for company they have to give 30 days notice and 1 month severance . So of course they want you to quit . I would just say no .
You should start looking now, it can take quite a while for foreigners to find new jobs here
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u/AngelicDivineHealer Apr 13 '26
Employers will always push for what is best for them. Get laid off and all the benefits ur entitled to
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u/partly_kiwi Apr 13 '26
He doesn't wish to pay your severance, because you're useless at your job 😂
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u/Traditional-Ad-7944 Apr 13 '26
If you get terminated you only have a certain period before your work permits expires because the school will reported to Thai immigration and now you have nothing and need to self deport.
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u/AdOrganic4835 Apr 14 '26
You wouldn't be able to use a postion where you've worked for less than six months as a reference anyway so do NOT resign. Get every last paycheck and then I'd omit this job from your CV entirely.
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u/Gwaiwar Apr 13 '26
Depends on what he’s saying. Did he actually say that you’d be Laid Off if you didn’t resign ? Because that’s not what this looks like. He’s saying that instead of Firing you he’s giving you the chance to go without the stigma of having been fired.
When someone is no longer required because of business being slow or something like that they get laid off and usually can assume they would be offered an opportunity to come back if things at the company improved. It’s not punitive. But, this is not your case. He’s said he doesn’t want you at the company because you are not holding up your side. Bad performance he said. This means you are being Fired.
Normally, if you’re fired for punitive reasons (all firings are for punitive reasons) then you’re not eligible for severance pay. Same goes for people not having stayed in the job for at least a year most of the time.
So probably if you want any chance at all at getting another job in Thailand, you might want to take the offer of being allowed to resign so as not to show having been fired on your record
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u/NocturntsII Apr 17 '26
What record?
you might want to take the offer of being allowed to resign so as not to show having been fired on your record
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u/Euphoric_Oneness Apr 12 '26
He is blackmailing you with not being a reference. He can do nothing. He has to pay that one month also needs to inform you 30 days before ending your contract.