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Are Thai People Really Lazy?

“Well, you know Thais, they're flippin lazy, man”, said the new expat I was introduced to today over coffee. Arghhh! I have heard this said so many times I can barely be bothered to respond anymore.

To me this statement is nothing more than another wild, sweeping generalization that rolls negatively off the tongue into the psyche of other newbies, who in turn spread the word and create a stereotype that is easily undone with some though and analysis. Thais being lazy really isn't my experience, except for a few people like this security guard below. I could have stolen some valuable artwork!

lazy thai people

A security guard at BACC asleep on the job

Since I came to Thailand, 6 years ago this July, the majority of Thais I have encountered are hard-working, and I can't fathom why people keep referring to Thais as”lazy.”

Perhaps it is the case that people perceive the Thai approach to work as lazy, i.e. the laid back “mai pen rai” (never mind) attitude? Or is that Thai people take longer to do stuff, or that they aspire to earn as much as possible doing as little work as possible? This is certainly the goal of most foreigners – not that many ever get there.

Of course, every country has its lazy people – those who don't want to work or don't want to work very hard – and there are certainly some lazy Thai people. But the fact that there is no social welfare system in Thailand means that the majority either work or get no money. Most Thais don't have the privilege of being lazy. Period.

I would argue that my fellow countrymen are far lazier than Thai people because so many rely on state handouts. Moreover, they're always pushing for better pay for less hours and easier work. The majority of Thais work long hours, for little money, and usually no fringe benefits.

My personal experience of Thai friends/family is a hard-working one. One of my closest friends, a Thai girl, works 7 days a week running 2 business. My girlfriend works 6 days a week, waking at 5.30am most days. My GFs sister and brother-in-law work insane hours. Her Dad has worked every day of his life in the baking hot weather since he was 13. My four close expat friends all have Thai girlfriends who work 5 days a week, and the Thais I have met through my martial arts club all work hard too, many running their own businesses.

And what of those I don't know personally? Well, the family that own the fruit stall in my soi run a 24-hour round the clock shift – no day off in the last 2 weeks. The guys in 7/11 seldom have a day off. Taxi drivers sleep just a few hours in their taxis before hitting the road again, and go up country and you have OAPs toiling the fields for 9 hours a day…SO WHERE ARE ALL THESE LAZY PEOPLE?

Sure, Thais like to relax, work has to be a little bit sanook (fun), and why not? Thais like things happy and not too serious, but to say “Thais are lazy” is just ignorant. Some, perhaps, but all? Come on. This coming from expats who drink more hours than they work!

If you think Thais are lazy, please share your experience. But please, no isolated “I knew a guy/girl….” exceptions. Give me concrete evidence that “Thais are lazy”, or just don't say it all!

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  1. Is it not simply the case that the predominant number of Western commentators on Thailand have not had the opportunity to get to know Thais of better social status and educational merit; rather that they are more likely to be familiar with those who are not high achievers and aren’t from high-achieving families?

    This being the case, isn’t it therefore impossible to form an opinion on the majority of Thais, given such a narrow base from which to draw any range of competence?

    Perhaps a more reasonable question posited by this article might therefore be “Are Thai People [of lower economic status] Really Lazy?”, in which case the answer would perhaps be less challenging for the typical Westerner to debate, than has appeared to be the case within this thread. The foregoing notwithstanding, there is of course the rampant inequality to factor into the argument, such that there is little wonder those from less privileged backgrounds find it difficult to motivate themselves to do better. Furthermore that the nation’s wealth comes from those working in the fields and the factories – not from those driving the Benzes in Bangkok who exploit the poor.

    And of course the present non-elected military crowd in power appear to be doing nothing other than to further strengthen those with power, to the detriment of the common people.

    Reply

    • You make a good point, but I’d add that those born into wealth – particularly the younger generation – may also fall into the “lazy bracket”. Having inherited a wealthy status off the back of their parents hard work, they are less motivated to work themselves. This is certainly the case with some of the high-end car driving elite who frequent the trendy bars of Thong Lor and Ekkamai. But I guess the same could be said in many countries around the world, and the same goes for your point on the lowers social scale. So perhaps the entire post is redundant, which in a roundabout way proves the overall point I was making 🙂

      Reply

  2. I do not drink, I am not a whoremonger, I am not a wanted criminal in my home country, I have a hard working thai wife I speak thai, I play the endless time wasteine expensive thai visa game, i know my way stound, etc etc. I get tired, frustrated, insulted and irritated being treated like a tourist to cheat, 2 of 3 taxis, all tuktuks,any vendor with in marked items think nothing of gouging me. Most Lotus and bigc clerks ignore me not replying when spoken to in thai. Thai people cut in front, interrupt me demand service (smiles – farang are the thai version of 1940s black Americans? lol) the subtlety of thai culture means polite seeming behavior is akin to being kicked in the groin. My thai wife often gets treated like a nana bargirl despite 25 years working for thai government.
    Lol and trash fills the streets,in deference to thai trash “politrness” – ask any farang how difficult it is to meet good thai. The best rule to follow is: if a that stranger talks to you protect your wallet. A thai wife allows me to be willing to endure this, if not for her…….

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    • I am not sure if it is me but my Thai (Issan) wife spends more time picking the fleas out of our dogs, pruning others and starting chores but never finishing them, than she does taking care of the home I spent 2 years building with my bare hands, while able bodied male family members did nothing but the bare minimum. If I don’t complain, which I hate doing, I spend my days living in shit and grime like the rest of our village. I find it hard to get my head around their mentality, although hey have nice big trucks. “You reap what you sow,” right?. I would not mind but I spend 60 hours a week teaching then have to do housework to live at the standard fit for humans not pigs. A tandem cycle with only one person pedaling…….. After reading the posts I believe ISSAN is a key word here…….. Ban Nok……

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      • I hear ya buddy. Entropy is defined as:

        1. PHYSICS
        a thermodynamic quantity representing the unavailability of a system’s thermal energy for conversion into mechanical work, often interpreted as the degree of disorder or randomness in the system.

        2. lack of order or predictability; gradual decline into disorder.

        Thai’s love entropy!

        It always makes me laugh to watch those soap operas on TV. Thai’s living in impossibly large and wealthy houses which are always immaculate. The wealth always seems to be inherited or from a large family company… what reality is this?!

        Reply

  4. This is all about Thai’s living/working in Thailand. How about Thai’s abroad? As an Aussie who met and married a Thai when she was studying in Australia I heard stories or laziness/cheating/easiest path on many occasions. Sure, what I heard was anacdotal but it was happening. Examples:

    – the Thai/Thai fake but legal marriage. This way only one of the two needed to study to remain in Australia. I know of two ‘couples’ personally who did this.
    – paying someone to sit in and study for you. Yes, they would have a proxy study.
    – the Thai restaurant (in Australia) that pays Thai wages or not much better when minimum wage is about $15/hr. My wife worked in a Thai restaurant on about $4 an hour – no payslip, no insurance, no superannuation. The restaurant would turn over up to $12,000/night and the owner rolled in dressed to the hilt in a Mercedes. Needless to say that job was quit after 3 nights. I’m not a communist by any means but if you can’t see what’s wrong with that much pay difference, well…
    – the Thai which rents out an appartment, sticks in a bunch of bunk beds and sub-rents to students at quite a profit. Incredibly, I’ve heard of these ‘landlords’ threatening to deport the students if they talk about it – funny, I didn’t realise that they had the power of Australian immigration officers.

    When you consider things like this you start to understand why Thailand has corruption. To me, corruption is a product of general society immaturity.

    From the get go. I said to my wife, if we do something we put in the work and do it properly. We declare all earnings, went properly through the driving/riding licence testing, all legit with immigration, etc. In the long run we are better of and in a much better position than her friends who took the easy path.

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  5. Thai people are not all lazy people.I’m Thai, My ennlish is not correct but I try to explain that Thais are lazy or not based on their implant subconscious and discipline From their family&Environment with attitude to life. Thai people don’t like who lazy.

    – eg. Security guardare who is sleeping because the most boring job which sees people acting opiates. He is lazy and his boss boss dismissed him, of course.

    – eg. women massage who sitting storefront massage, Maybe she will relax in during a break Or waiting for customers.

    – Most Chinese people Thailand are hard work because Their
    Culture Life.
    – eg. Work while you work, and play while you play. So they are serious work done.

    I don’t Know Why this post is important why the debate. It affects people who are not well known in Thailand. I wanna tell you that if you meet Thai who are strill lazy or bad Thais, please reminded them. If you have Lazy Thai worker, please warned and chased them out of work. If you meet who is patience and perseverance, always seeking new knowledge, you have Good Gift. Thank you

    Reply

    • I agree with you Immy.

      The ladies at my local massage shop work up to 12-14 hours a day, sometimes doing 8-9 massages a day. This is NOT lazy! You might see them sitting down eating inbetween, but if anyone has given someone else a massage before, you will know that after 10 minutes you want to stop. Imagine doing that for 9 hours a day!

      Some condo security guards can be lazy, like the one in my condo who never wants to get up and help me open the door when I have 10 shopping bags. But others are on their feet all day and work very hard.

      When someone says “Thai people are lazy”, this is just an ignorant generalisation. Some people are lazy and others aren’t. Different jobs require different levels of physical activity. Someone who sits on a computer all day might be considered lazy to someone who works outside in the sun all day on a building site.

      There are more lazy people in my country than in Thailand, that’s for sure. In Thailand, if you don’t want to work, you don’t eat. In my country, if you don’t want to work, you get food for free.

      Reply

    • Thai people: enjoy first then work…

      That is the stupid attitude they have.

      I have open spa, ktv and food store in bangkok and have first hand experience with them.

      All they know is ใช่ ใช่ (yes yes)…
      All NATO no action talk only.

      I am not saying all thais are like that but majority of them are… sorry to say.

      Even my friends who have thai wife also speak the same. If given another chance they would not find a thai wife… spoken out by them.

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  6. I Just Got Done Reading Your Article On Thai Lazy, This Is So Bogus… I Have Vaca’d In Thailand 4 Times Over 12 Years For At Least 1 Month To 1.5 Months And I Must Say That I Have Never Seen A More Hard Working Class Of People From The Preteens To The Elderly. It Just Baffles The Mind That They Work Many Hours For A Small Amount Of Money With No Time Off, And When They Do Get Time For Themselves They Share It With Family & Friends…
    You Need To Open Your Eyes And Ears To Understand What Thai Life Is All About… Don’t So Quick To Judge…..

    Reply

      • Let’s just say that Thai’s are indeed as hard working as westerners. If this is true than why is the west in a higher state of development? Why isn’t this hard work paying off? Are they working hard but in circles, rather than a straight line?

        Conversely, many look at westerners as being lazy. But again, why is the west better developed. Why does lazy produce better outcomes?

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    • I agree to this comment. Normally foreigners who dont believe on the negative attitudes of thai people are most likely to have thai girlfriends or wife that they are very much exposed to their kind just showing off so they wont be tagged as “lazy” and oh by the way why not make an article about the thai attitude “i just want to show off”. That would be a great article

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    • I do not agree. Thai people are lazy and not lazy. This new middle class is very lazy and can not do anything by own hands. They are happy we have our own house and food. It does not matter, if clothings and shirts are on the floor and in a box. Never mind it easy to find it from there, what You need.

      And what a waste of time to find cloths. But thai people do not want to think,
      what happens tomorrow. They just are happy, what is now. They have food,
      You can sleep where every You want.

      All the house are just half made, not finished. And still they say I like beauty.
      But if You go to thai home, everything is on the floor in boxes and boxes are every where.

      So lazy or not, but I will say thais are lazy to think and make changes. Everything have to be like Grand Mother said.

      This is big problem here, if thai’s do not start thinking. How many invention have made in Thailand? Not many I know.

      And working, what is that? They are at the work place 10 hours and work 8 hours. Because they sleep and eat too.

      Lazy or not, but they have here big problems.

      Auan

      Reply

  7. I have lived in Thailand for only 4 months now. In my experience I would not say Thai’s are lazy, per say, but… Thai’s (compared to western countries) do lack things such as ‘inititive’, ‘pride of home’ and ‘future though’.

    One only needs to look at a Thai house. There is stuff around the yard everywhere, most of it is junk that’s been there for years and will never be used. Where is the pride of home? There is no inititive to clean up the place let alone landscape and actually improve the house.

    Future though? Many Thai I have met don’t have a concept of finance beyond the next meal. They complain about not having enough money to travel, for example, but don’t understand overseas travel requires months of saving, even for westerners… Traditionally the kids looked after the elders but with many Thai’s not having children now and not even getting married, well, something will have to give.

    Lazy, no. But if they want what we have in the west then a solid kick up the bum in many areas is required.

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  8. Come on people. Lazy people are everywhere! Think of this: if X % (X is a number, by the way) of the total population is composed of lazy individual, assuming that laziness has a correlation with the ethnicity, then we will see more lazy people from the population of 70,000,000-ish than in the population (of different ethnicity) of 1,000,000. I am a Thai who was raised by a highly driven and ambitious family, and I have friends to were raised by an easy-going and laid-back family. Now, I am living in Canada and I have had experience living with roommates from different ethnicity. I have met lazy Chineses (not to mention that my lazy Chinese roommate used to have an even lazier Korean roommate), lazy Indians, and lazy Canadians; laziness exists in ALL nations. However, I haven’t met any lazy European yet, so I couldn’t prove a European to be lazy. Yet, I have to admit that my Thai friends are lazy. BUT, a whole lot of my non-Thai friends are even lazier than my Thai friends. That’s very human; Lazy people are omnipresent and ubiquitous. Period.

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    • Laziness is hugely subjective, too. Mother Nature doesn’t give a toss if you stress yourself out every day of your life trying to be “successful”, because ultimately it has no meaning. Material gains, qualifications, all this self-development stuff. Hell, she laughs at all this because the key objective in nature is self-preservation and longevity. Eat, rest, stay well, don’t destroy the environment and bear offspring to keep your lineage going. As long as you do these things, I doubt she gives a crap if others call you lazy.

      Anyway, just a little spiritual take on this subject 🙂

      But really, the large majority of Thai people I have met in my years here have been hard working and happy to pitch in and help others too.

      Reply

    • What, all 60 million of them? Or you mean just the ones you’ve encountered working in the “tourist” industry. This is certainly not my experience. Thai people on the whole have been very generous to me and never ask for anything in return.

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  10. Hi, I have loved in Thailand for almost 5 years now and I am married to a Thai national. Me and my wife met in the UK as she was studying there and experience as well as mine is that Thai men are predominantly lazy. Women on the other hand are exceptionally hard working. This problem is top down, bottom up.

    At government level it is usually a male boss doing all the talking, but when it comes to doing the actual work, it is passed on to his secretaries who are predominantly female.

    I have been told by many Thai females that the problem is thai boys are taught and treeted as though they are incapable and so there sisters, mother, aunts etc must always help them. As the men get older this reliance on women to everything persists and men will only do the easiest of jobs. The majority of builders I see in Thailand at least in Bangkok are women, most office workers are women, most teachers are women. Men seem to get top jobs, like doctors, but there are lazy and often just talk and send you off with a female nurse to be treated.

    I know a lot of thai guys and their work ethic is nothing compared to their other halves.

    I know a few busines owners who say thepat if they could, they would hire an all female staff.

    It’s not that Thai people are lazy in general, because at least 50% of them work harder than most people! it just that the other 50% are more visible and often hold positions of authority.

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  11. I’m Thai, born in the US and moved / stayed here for about 20 years and from my experiences, majority of Thais are lazy. Of course I would like to say all Thais are but then I would be completely biased. But I am confident enough to say that out of every 10 Thais, about 8 or 9 are lazy although you may need to know more about the person to finally have them show their true colors.

    Thais are pretty good at giving first impressions simply because in this country, saving face is everything (which leads to why many Thai people are insecure). So if they give a good impression, for example, they claim they are rich, you will start to believe the reason they are rich is because they’re hardworking. But the truth is that most of them lie (only when you know them enough to see through their masks).

    Thai people love cars because cars = you have $$$. I know a ton of Thais who say they bought their car with cash on hand and they worked very hard for that cash when in reality, they earn minimum wage due to their laziness and are most likely going to be in debt for the rest of their lives.

    Thais complain they don’t earn enough yet when I find them freelance jobs to do which pays way more than their fulltime job, they don’t take it. In fact, some are so lazy that they want me to contact them to give them the job. If they really were hardworking, calling me back wouldn’t be a problem at all considering I am helping them to begin with.

    I know some Thais who are happy with their minimum wage jobs simply because they do just about nothing at work, even if they have to sit around for 8 hours a day, 6 days a week. I would die of boredom and would rather use all that time to get paid more.

    Majority of Thais would rather spend the night going out than to work for extra money. They complain about money yet don’t expect to do anything about it. The only reason you see people work 6 days a week and all that is because if they don’t, they’re going to starve to death, and starving to death isn’t a good feeling. Try offering them something more difficult but with better pay and I’m quite sure they will either find excuses not to do it or flat out say they don’t want it.

    I think the problem with this article is that the author doesn’t know these Thais well enough to see their true colors.

    Also to make sure, I’m Thai, fluent in both English and Thai therefore I’m quite sure my opinion is different from say, how a farang sees a Thai.

    Reply

    • I second what Persona wrote.

      I mean there never “All Thais are like …”, “All Germans are like…”, “All Britons are like..” and so on.

      But what I see in Thailand is women sitting all day long in their massage Studios (real one, not the boom-boom massage, but even there, too).
      And I swear if they were offered free classes to get higher education and subsequently get higer payment, they would not take those classes.

      There may be a cultural difference in Thailand: There is native Thai, there is People from Isaan, and there is Thai-Chinese! The last Group is really far from anyone could call lazy!!!
      People from Isaan have been Born in a 45 degree Environment… So, how much working would we do in such an Environment?

      And: Who says that working hard, and making mucho $$ is really the key to happiness?
      I mean maybe People from Tahiland, Jamaica etc. are much happier in their life than many greedy Westeners…
      Our income is taxed away, and in case of a divorce the women take it.
      Haha. 😉

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      • I really don’t think they want to be sitting all day. If they are they aren’t getting paid and won’t be able to pay for rent, food and send money home to their kids and parents. In my local massage place the women often work 10-12 hours a day and do 8+ massages, depending on how busy it is. When they aren’t busy they are complaining. Try doing just a one hour Thai massage and see how your hands and arms feel. Doing that constantly, day in day out, takes its toll. In the UK, a masseuse will do maximum 2 or 3 a day, some just half an hour, and get paid upwards of 50 GBP for each. Many of the women I see sitting around are 45-50+, but look older in terms of body shape and general health. They have had poor nutrition and bad diets their whole lives, so it’s no wonder they lack energy.

        Also, I think it’s unfair to use the Thai massage industry as an indication of laziness. I’m visiting a friend at an office this morning and every single person here is hard at work. Most here work 9am to 7pm.

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    • How about traditional housewife Thai mothers. They believe and tell their children, especially their daughters, that ‘I have given you the gift of life and raised you therefore you are forever in my debt’… So the kids grow up, start working and the Thai mum ‘retires’ as soon as possible because at 40 something years old she’s had a hard life sweeping the house floor twice a day and being worshipped by the kids. The kids now have to pay any spare money to the parents and the cycle of poverty continues.

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    • I think the problem with this article is that the author doesn’t know these Thais well enough to see their true colours.

      This is very accurate persona. As is your descriptions of the average Thai. Yes, there are hardworking Thais, and there are lazy people in all places and ethnic groups, but the author seems to speak with authority whilst not having had a well rounded experience. He has perhaps spent much of his time within a certain social strata in Thailand. I have noticed this in his other articles, where he glosses over very real issues in Thailand and somehow only finds fault not in the Thais themselves but in the type of person that is drawn to Thailand/Thais.

      I have lived and worked around Thailand over 15 years, as well as in other countries, can speak Thai fluently, and agree 100% with your view.

      TTL: These massage girls/masseuses you speak of, the majority of them sit around in their free time doing practically nothing. They have a golden opportunity in that free time to study and exit the industry. But most won’t do that EVEN if presented the opportunity on a golden platter. I have personal experience with this.

      Even in the office environment, I have never seen a more lazy, shallow people, perhaps with the exception of the Middle East.

      I’ve often met lazy Brits or Americans or even Canadians, they may be lazy but that is not the average.

      No, we shouldn’t generalize. But either way you slice it, you will be generalizing from your experience.

      The bottom line is this…if you were to give an AVERAGE Thai the opportunity to something better, that would require much harder work, you will discover in many cases that they will either not accept the opportunity, or they won’t live up to their end of the bargain.

      Interestingly, the hardest working Thais I have met and known, including my wife, are those who could care less for the THAI WAY or culture. They break free from that and somehow that gives them a totally different perspective of life. It also seems to eliminate their addiction to saving/gaining face.

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  14. The real issue here is comparisons. Laziness is relative to the social norm, it is subjective. I have 6 or 7 Thai employees and I really struggle with what I perceive to be both their physical and mental apathy. One poster commented on the heat, and its a vliad observation that heat makes physicaal exertion more difficult. In fact I think the climate effects the whole physcology of the Thai way of life and particularly the work ethic.

    Westerners from temperate climates in the northern hemisphere, have a cultural, evolutionary impetus to excel in economic terms, to “store” the result of excessively productve behaviour for when the cold weather comes. The evolution of the SE Asia and Thailand imparticular simply does not have the same drivers. Fall asleep under a coconut tree for they day, and theres every chance you can still eak out a meal of somekind before the sun goes down. Work for Thai’s has not been an evolutionary necessity.

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    • Yes, the west has the protestant work ethic at play. Even if you are not christian it is permiated into society. Even by comparing catholic western countries to protestant western countries you can see a difference, let alone by comparing to a bhuddist country.

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  16. I’ve never been to Thailand, but I have to agree with Chris about Thais being lazy, selfish, and bad manner. I have nothing to be bias about Thai people. It happens that I have a coworker who is Thai Chinese, but she has lost her Chinese culture in her, said by her. I’ve been working with her for 1 year. Through conversation, time with her, I notice that she is in fact lazy, selfish, and rude.
    She is 37 years old living in North America for 6 years. I asked why she wants to leave Thailand while the rest of her family still live in Thailand. She wants to have a change. She didn’t say explicitly. But through the conversations, I guess one thing from her is that she wants to look for a husband. But I don’t know if she can find one soon because she fits into the Thai characteristics that Chris said.

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    • That’s one Thai person out of 60 million odd. Thai-Chinese are known here for their non-stop work ethic. There are lazy people in every country. There are rude people in every country. However, for the majority of people who come into contact with Thais, the experience is largely positive. Thai people are generally great to be around. They live in the moment, they enjoy life for what it is and they prefer to smile and laugh than moan and criticise.

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  17. You’d be lazy too if your monthly salary was 5-10K baht for 10 hour workdays which is in fact not uncommon for unskilled shop work. Thais make up for lack of material wealth by being social and playing around.

    I do not believe Thais are lazy at all, they’re exceptional at service fields for example in most better hotels and the food cart lady making 100s if not 1000s of meals a day is not exactly lazy either, neither is her son/daughter who goes from school to work every day.

    The Thais who are lazy are the Thais spoiled in the tourist industry where people tip them for nothing and they get used to people coming and going with no repurcusions for bad work ethic.

    You get what you pay for. If you pay your security guard the minimum wage, don’t be surprised when he goes to sleep on his nightshift.

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  18. I’ve been living in Thailand for about 6 years, have been married to a Thai for about 2 years, and most of my friends are Thai. I would have to say that, overall, the perception of Thais by both foreigners and Thais is that they are lazy. My wife and friends (Thai) often jokingly attribute general problems in Thai society to “prawaa kon Thai kee gyet” (because Thai people are lazy).

    In my own experience, having worked for both Thai companies and foreign-run companies employing Thais, I would say that Thais in general will take the shortest and easiest path to get something done. I suppose this is not necessarily laziness per se, as they are at least getting from Point A to Point B, but I would certainly never expect them to do so with any flare, creativity, or “above and beyond” demonstration of effort. I would call them “lazy thinkers”. A prime example would be that If they can get away with copying and pasting something into reports, they will. If asked to think for themselves and put any level of creative input into something, it is like a deer in headlights. They aren’t taught to think independently in their school systems, and this translates to copy-and-paste mentality. I have never seen plagiarism on the same level as in Thai society. Certainly, many will stay late hours, but I have learned that this is mostly because air conditioning and internet in the office are free.

    As another example, I just asked my wife her thoughts on the issue, and she responded: “Yes, of course Thai people are lazy. Look at the red shirts taking 500 baht hand outs as vote bribes. They will do anything to get money without working. Some Thais sell their kids to avoid working hard. Prostitution is also a form of laziness, trying to get money through the least exertion possible, and is obviously rampant throughout Thailand.”

    I am not one of those grumpy anti-Thai forum posters on thaivisa.com, and I do not have any hatred towards Thais. I would, however, say that there is a tendency to laziness in their society.

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    • Hi Chris, thanks for your input, some valid points to think about, particularly about creativity and going “above and beyond” – but then sadly the Thai school system doesn’t encourage creativity at a young age, in fact I had a message this week from a teacher talking about just that. Initiative, free thinking and creativity are replaced with the teachings of traditional standards.

      Regarding your wife’s comment about the redshirts, I think that is a little harsh. Who wouldn’t accept 500 Baht a day to sit at a demonstration for a few days if you’ve been breaking your back in rice fields for the last twenty years for little more than 150 Baht a day or less. They no nothing of politics, they are just trying to create a better life for themselves by capitalising on opportunity, the same way we all do, albeit in different ways using different means. I wouldn’t say these guys are lazy either. Have you ever worked from 6am – 4pm in the boiling hot sun labouring in a rice field or on a building site? I haven’t and I wouldn’t want to.

      I think to say prostitution is laziness is a sweeping generalisation; for the majority it is a “choice” made against few other choices. We must accept looking down from our privileged lives that education, class, regional prejudice, a lack of state welfare and male accountability for their offspring are key factors in why the industry has grown as it has in Thailand. Some might argue that purposely little is done to prevent women falling into this net because the industry – propped up largely by tourism – provides financial support for approximately 1.7m (and their dependents) of the population, meaning the government don’t need to provide support through welfare/education/back to work schemes, etc, from what should be the public purse. *that figure is approximate and inclusive of male and female sex workers.

      It is all too easy for a person who has had access to a decent education, never had to question where the next meal is coming from, and always had access to funds when needed to point the finger at prostitution. The way capitalist societies are set up is that there has to be people on the bottom who, no matter how hard they labour, will stay there. Not everyone can be well-off or well educated (money and class dictates this in Thailand, certainly) or have the dream they see others living who were more privileged in life’s birth lottery. And therefore to attain the things the TV/media says will make us “happier” some are willing to risk their being.

      Moreover, if a woman with 2 children, with no education and no financial support from the children’s father or the state, has a choice to work as a cleaner for 8,000 Baht a month or a prostitute for 30,000+, I can imagine that is a fairly tough call. On one hand no woman wants to become a prostitute (most), but on the other any child/parent will tell you that if facing remaining poor, and all the hardship that comes with it, they would sacrifice themselves for their family/kids to have a better life. As we know, a degree is a minimum for a woman to find a job that will make her self sufficient in Thailand, let alone support dependent(s). And after all, should she not aspire for her children to have a good education and the best in life as we aspire for our kids? Remember, many of these women come from broken families, often where alcoholism, gambling and/or abuse is present. There is no “can you help me out with next month’s rent Dad”, or “I want to set up this business can I have a loan”. There is no money, and if there is, it gets spent on booze and/or gambled away. Many parents put increasing pressure on daughters to send money home, and girls won’t turn their backs on parental pressure/mental abuse because of face, not to mention that their kids usually stay with their parents so they have a responsibility to send money home in that respect. Parental pressure concerning money is a huge factor, something the middle/upper clases need not worry about because the parents support the children, not the other way around.

      Before simply casting people off as lazy one needs to walk a mile in another’s shoes. My sister in law works in a factory with her husband. They have one child. Their life is a constant struggle to get ahead of themselves, to save money for their daughter and their future. He is a good man, doesn’t drink or gamble or hit the karaoke bars, yet 2 salaries each month only just make ends meet. They would love to start a business, but with only a high school rural education that finished early, the likelihood of them being successful in such an endeavour is slim, and besides who will lend them the money? The bank won’t, which would mean being exploited by the high interests of a loan shark, another reason many resort to the fast money to be made in prostitution; paying off family loans. So can you tell me how a girl with 1 perhaps 2 kids, no education, parental pressure for money and no savings can carve out a good standard of living for her and her children in a society where living costs are rising and a university degree is standard for a job upwards of 10,000 Baht?

      The notion that it is an easy job is also misguided. Can you imagine being an attractive young woman who should be hanging out with guys her own age enjoying life, but instead has to crack on to sociapathic old western men night after night, and then have them abuse her like a dog in the bedroom just to get paid. That is no easy task. It takes mental conditioning. Not to mention all the drinking and unsociable hours will take their toll. This is why an increasing number of these women are ending up alcoholics and drug addicts. But who cares, right? They’re just lazy poor people.

      Of course, even when faced with considerable financial hardship, I think it takes a certain type of person to be able to do such a job, for any considerable period of time, anyway. Or maybe not, maybe I have never been desperate enough or pressured enough by culture/parents etc to understand. Humans are highly adaptable beings, and once the soul is numbed to being used as a physical means to an end I guess it becomes sort of normal. Some would rather remain poor and accept their lot, others want the “happy family” TV dream, and don’t see why all these other people should have it and not them just because they were luckier in the birth lottery. Fair enough.

      I won’t deny, however, that there is always the exception to the rule. Just as there are in the west there are women who don’t need to work in the sex industry but choose to for easy money, but as we know 90%+ female prostitutes in Thailand have kid(s), zero education and come from underprivileged backgrounds. I dare say that it is us who are lazy in our understanding of others.

      Reply

  19. One of the obvious reasons that people perceive Thais as lazy is all of the napping that goes on while they are working.

    One of the things I immediately noticed as unique to Thailand is the motorcycle taxis taking a nap on their bike, Shop girls sleeping with their head on the counter, Tuk Tuk Drivers pulled over to the side of the road sleeping in the back seat.

    It is simply something you do not see where I am from. If you were to take a nap at work, particularly with your head on the service counter, you would be fired!

    Personally, the four years I have been here in Bangkok, the Thai’s that I have developed relationships with both personal and professional are not lazy. They just have a completely different perspective on life, one that I personally admire.

    Reply

    • I think the napping is largely down to bad diet. People are under the illusion that Thai food is really good for you, but truth is it is laden with sugar, which is causing a huge diabetes problem nationwide. Add to the mix the 7-11 diet of snacks and nitrate/processed hot dogs and you have a recipe for zero power and sugar crashes. Rice also comprises a main staple of the Thai diet; a simple carb that burns quickly through the body providing little sustainable energy resource. The plus side is the vegetable and fruit intake, but I fear this is being heavily replaced by snacking on “khanom” (sweets/snacks). It is also very hot, we must bear that in mind. I like an afternoon nap here myself, whereas in colder climates I tend not too. Another consideration is airconditioning. Surely breathing this all day can’t be good for the respiratory system and staying awake..?

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    • Indeed Valerie, but I also think that laziness is partly mistaken for it being too bloody hot to work like a dog in many countries. It is easy to be productive in an air conditioned office, not so easy when the sun is beating down on your back. I am up country at the moment and have been forced to nap each afternoon due to heat exposure, and I have the luxury of being able to jump into an air conditioned car for a break when needed.

      Reply

  22. There are many lazy people in the world, but I would not consider Thai’s “in general”
    lazy. You must always take culture and upbringing into consideration when analyzing any situation. Now American’s there f–kin lazy;)

    Reply

  23. I think some people mistake hard work for talent and achievement, thinking they deserve accolades simply for working hard regardless of results.

    If one works hard but has no talent, they won’t get far. You may obtain similar results with talent but an unwillingness to work at it. Only with talent and hard work can one expect to excel.

    I think we do people a disservice by telling them all they have to do is work hard or not be lazy and they will succeed.

    Reply

    • “thinking they deserve accolades simply for working hard regardless of results”

      I would beg to differ, a person who is visibly working harder surely deserves respect for their effort, it is highly likely that person is simply in a role that is not suited to their own talents, by not acknowledging their efforts we are more likely to give them reason to regret putting in the effort.

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      • One can view my statement from different perspectives and I was perhaps visualizing those talentless idiots on American Idol, as an example, who think they deserve to win just because they worked hard and really, really want it. I don’t think it is necessarily enough to just show up in life.

        Granted in a personal relationship we often make exceptions based on different objectives and expectations. It doesn’t pay to be too honest or critical in all situations. Still I find the “I work so hard” line does not often sway me. I would rather see someone work smart, rather than work hard, but that is just me.

        Reply

  24. Heres a few “points”…

    The propensity for many “rural” Thais not to cleanup their homes, properties and the levels of polution on most main highways. This is not unique to Thais however it is arguably more abundant in Thailand than the rest of SE Asia, look at KL and Singapore now. Polution in Thailand is a major issue and something the ASEAN members have listed as an item to be addressed.

    Failure to “finish” one project before moving onto the next, it could be called “laziness” but it is a very common Thai trait that many Government departments, business owners and employees never seem to finish one project or task and seem to jump about as if avoiding the obvious work left to be done.

    I lasted just under 3 weeks working as a senior development consultant at Kasikorn bank, I walked out because I had no hope of achieving what I had been brought onboard to do simply because of the “cultural” traits like what @Vansi lists. Management too “lazy” too implement real change and bring about stricter and yet more open work policies allowing staff to work harder for rewards, very senior management avoiding bring attention to problems, of laziness and slow delivery schedules etc, for fear of having their own work and practices reviewed. And the list went on and on, my personal impression of large corporate policies and workers in the banking industry in Thailand was that the vast majority of the staff were “lazy” compared to the likes of Singapore, KL, HK, Seoul and even Indonesia.

    Reply

    • @Lloyd. I take your point that people might not be lazy to go to work but are lazy at work and lazy to implement ideas/strategy conducive to increased productivity and the welfare of others. But at this point perhaps other aspects of “Thainess” come into play, like “mai pen rai”, Buddhism/Mindfulness (as Vansi notes)?

      Reply

      • I don’t go for the whole “Thainess” and as for “mai pen rai”, thing, its more of a cultural excuse than anything genuinely unique. The same people who will spend their days avoiding confrontation, failing to finish projects and basically being “lazy” are often the first to kick-off if they are given the same level of respect or service!

        Reply

        • I agree

          TheThailandLife:
          @Lloyd. I take your point that people might not be lazy to go to work but are lazy at work and lazy to implement ideas/strategy conducive to increased productivity and the welfare of others. But at this point perhaps other aspects of “Thainess” come into play, like “mai pen rai”, Buddhism/Mindfulness (as Vansi notes)?

          Lloyd:
          I don’t go for the whole “Thainess” and as for “mai pen rai”, thing, its more of a cultural excuse than anything genuinely unique. The same people who will spend their days avoiding confrontation, failing to finish projects and basically being “lazy” are often the first to kick-off if they are given the same level of respect or service!

          Lazy people are everywhere, You can find them wherever you go. There’s lazy people here in Philippines too. Whatever nationality or Country you’re from.

          Reply

  25. I have a Thai wife and we both have a young son.
    We spend many times each year travelling to Thailand to see her family and our friends there. Her family is from Chanthaburi which is just far enough out of BKK to be much more relaxed, but not easy!
    Her family own fruit orchards and also work in the local University, they work bloody hard. Much harder than I would ever want to. In that aspect, I am lazy! I am like this, because I come from a country (Australia) where if I did not want to work, I could live on Government payments for the rest of my life. Like so many of the Aussies here!!!
    But I am not like that….
    I have witnessed the lives of many Thai friends whom come from families in the country and the big cities and all of them work extremely hard.

    I would say that any fellow Farang’s whom say that Thai’s are lazy, they really need to spend time with Thai’s. Live with them, experience their life, spend weeks/months with them. Then you will have a whole new idea of how they live and then will realise that we are fortunate to live in countries that pay us to be lazy!

    Reply

    • @jimbob80 – I think that’s half the problem. The majority of farangs who say stuff like this have a limited experience of the “average working thai person” and are usually speaking from isolated negative experience or the hearsay of others. Of course, there are lazy people in every country,and there are certainly different work practices here, not all of them positive as @Lloyd points out, but to simply say “Thais are lazy” is ignorant.

      Reply

    • I have Two Thai boys they are lazy it’s all too hard to work. Here in Australia. They just. Can’t get it. Australians do work hard too but the boys seem too wait. On the silver plate all the time they can’t work it out

      Reply

  26. You live in Bangkok, people in Bangkok are driven because of competition you can’t survive without being cut throat and working hard. Exit Bangkok and then you know how lazy people are. I lived in Chiang Mai for three years and only know maybe 10 people who work hard. I know plenty of people who are at work 10 hours a day 6 days a week there but I wouldn’t call any of them diligent nor would I call them hardworking.

    Thais have a saying “Northern lazy, Isaan money, central selfish, and southerners are bad”. This is a generalization however there is more than a little truth to this.

    Reply

    • Chris, that last bit was very funny.
      But I live in CM and my cousin runs a small-medium office here, and boy, do I wish my business in Bangkok would be half as productive AND sanouk as his business and workers.

      This is my observations so far, and I am a noob here, only a year, living in CM but running a fast-paced business in Bangkok employing staffers and service-providers as outsource.

      1. Thais are very hard-working
      2. Thais want to take pride in their work
      3. Thais have a healthy attitude towards insane farangs demands
      4. Thais can draw a line saying “enough is enough”

      But
      1. Thais are not problem-solvers
      2. Thais are uncomfortable being forth coming with problems at work
      3. Thais tend to keep things buried inside and act a little passive-aggressive sometimes
      4. Thais need guidance in technical tasks as they tend to think below the horizon.

      AND
      1. Some Thais SAY Thais are lazy
      2. There is a serious culture gap, (and I can write a book about this, some of the stigmas deriving from westerners using western filters to decipher Thai social behavior.)
      3. Westerners don’t take Buddhism as part of the equation. Hell, I heard some very prominent westerners here saying “It’s not really a buddhist country”. Well, it is! And, for example, the concept of middle-way (Not too tight not to loose) is so imbued in the culture but so not understood by western expats, that it turns into “They are all lazy, just looking for sanouk-sabai”)

      My conclusion?
      Thais are not lazy. Westerners, at least some of them, are. Lazy in an imperial, white-man burden sort of way, imposing western concepts on a host culture that is way more subtle and intricate then their own binary, lazy way of perceiving the world around them.

      Reply

      • I would struggle to disagree with anything in that list Vansi. Indeed, some Thais do say other Thais are lazy, but I guess all of us say that about some of our fellow countrymen. I have met a good few Chinese people who think Thais are very lazy.

        Reply

    • Good point, but then most people migrate to the city to work harder to earn more money because working harder in rural areas doesn’t necessarily yield more money – suggesting they aren’t lazy. I agree that arguably it is easier to be lazier outside of city life because there isn’t the pressure to keep up. I suppose I am like that, when my back is against the wall I work harder.

      Reply

    • Hey Chris, we were having the same conversation on your blog under the article ‘why i hate Toms’ your article was one big generalization. Someone pointed out they know a Tom who was nice and then you said there are exceptions to every rule. I then commented asking why don’t you put some of these exceptions in your article then so you would come across so narrow minded and judgmental and guess what, you deleted all of my comments!! Not a very professional way to run a blog! If you cant take the criticism then maybe running a blog aint for you.

      Sorry to this blog owner for jumping in with this, but it is kinda relevant to Chris’s comments above and it’s nice to know that the readers still have freedom of speech even if they have to go about posting it on a different blog!

      Reply

      • I think I hit the approve thing twice and it went to un-approve but then I approved it anyway it was there when you made this comment so i don’t know what your talking about. Very rarely do I delete a comment. Since moving out of Chiang Mai though I do see Thai’s working harder even if that’s contradicting what I may have said previously. It’s OK Tom, to have a difference of opinion.

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      • well i didn’t make it up and i’m surprised you never heard the saying before.
        Just because you go to work for 10 hours a day every day doesn’t make you diligent nor does it make you hardworking, it’s what you do while you’re there and how productive you are determines whether you are hardworking or not.

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    • The culture is very lazy. I’ve worked in both public and private entities for five years, and it’s always about doing as little as possible and sweeping wrong doing under the rug in order to save-face. Additionally, I’m married to a Chinese-Thai. She is highly educated, week-read, and well travelled.

      It’s too depressing to continue writing, so I’ll stop here. But please keep in mind, it is a developing country so you cannot place the same standards/values on its citizens. Of the fifty countries I’ve had the pleasure of visiting, Thais are certainly the most unique… and not in the most flattering sense.

      Reply

      • Hey Tony, just wondering if you categorise your wife under the same “laziness” umbrella?

        I genuinely can’t say this is my experience. All my Thai friends work incredibly hard, as do the large majority of Thais I see running businesses and working for businesses in and around where I live. Most are slugging it out, working 12 hour+ days for not much incentive.

        I honestly can’t see that it is any worse or different to my home country. Back in the UK we have millions who don’t want to work and grow up with a “self-entitlement” attitude to life, leaning on others and the state their entire lives, while others wouldn’t dream of not pitching in and doing a hard day’s graft each day.

        Reply

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