Tool developed to help navigate evolving occupations and skills needs of Thailand’s automotive sector

BANGKOK, Thailand (ILO News) - Key stakeholders from Thailand's automative manufacturing sector have charted pathways to meet the rapidly evolving skills needs of the sector's workforce.

A workshop, held in Bangkok on 20 February 2025, marked the final stage of a collaborative effort to develop a comprehensive map of qualifications and occupations aligned with ongoing digital and technological innovations that are transforming the sector.

As the world of work undergoes significant transformations driven by digitalization, demographic changes and the shift towards more sustainable economies, industries such as automotive manufacturing are faced with both challenges and opportunities.

While millions of new jobs are expected to emerge from these shifts, many low-skilled jobs are at risk. An effective policy response requires targeted skills development support for small and medium-sized enterprises that are central in the supply chains, to ensure that they have a skilled workforce and through their operations they can contribute to the realization of decent work, and to the adoption of more responsible business practices. In Thailand, the automotive manufacturing sector is at the forefront of this transition.

With technical support from ILO, the occupational map has been designed to assist employers, workers and policymakers in navigating these changes by providing a clear framework to understand the changing nature of jobs in the sector. Specifically, the tool outlines the competencies required per occupation at each stage of a worker's career in line with national skills standards and the evolving labour market demands of the sector. Importantly, the map identifies new occupations which will be critical as the sector embraces more sustainable practices.

The map's utility is expected to extend to various stakeholders. For governments, employers' and workers' organizations the tool can be used to identify skills shortages and align learning and training with sector-specific skills needs. Meanwhile, employers can use the map to better understand the qualifications needed for specific roles, helping them match jobseekers to vacancies and plan for future workforce development needs. For workers, the tool offers a clearer view of potential career pathways, enabling them to make informed decisions about their professional development.

"To ensure that workers can successfully adapt to new roles and functions, careful planning for reskilling and upskilling is paramount. The map presented today provides a critical resource for the sector, laying the foundations for initiating skills-focused responses to the anticipated changes in the industry", said XXX ILO.

"More broadly, promoting the effective alignment of the demand and supply of skills in the sector will help to foster a more competitive, sustainable, and resilient automotive industry in Thailand."

Once inputs from stakeholders at the validation workshop have been integrated into the map, the finalised tool will be presented to national and sectoral stakeholders for adoption.

The initiative is led by the ILO Skills Development and Responsible Business Conduct for Transition project, and funded by the Japanese Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI).

Workshop participants gather for a group photo

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