The government of Laos plans to increase the minimum wage in an effort to attract hundreds of thousands of migrant workers home from neighbouring countries, especially Thailand. The Thai government recently gave worker registration cards to over 110,000 Laotians, who had been working illegally, but there are another estimated 200,000 Laotians still working illegally. The Vientiane government plans to raise the minimum wage from 626,000 kip ($92) a month to 900,000 kip ($132) in the hope of luring many of these people home so that their skills can attract foreign investment.
