Manoon Makpol
No one grows up dreaming of becoming a day laborer, but
Charun Sunrang not only has made the best of his lot in life, he finishes
each sweaty, back-breaking day proud of the things he’s built.
Charun, 45, was one of three men from Ban Kraud, Buriram
digging up Second Road near Soi 3 to lay fiber-optic cable for CAT Telecom’s
new high-speed Internet initiative. No one will remember the months he,
Detnarong Nooprakhon and Supoj Praisang spent under the Pattaya sun,
installing cable and laying electrical wiring to power expensive home and
business networks, but they will finish the project this November knowing
they helped build the infrastructure of the nation.
“Manual labor is not an occupation anyone dreams of,”
Charun said. “Every day means sweaty work, relocating to new living places
and lots of difficulties. But the nation needs us and there is work to be
had in every city.”
It’s been a year since the Buriram trio has been back
home to Issan. They started digging in February and still have months to go.
After that, Charun said, they’ll try to find new work in Pattaya, but may
have to again migrate to another city.
He knows that laborers like him are ignored or looked
down upon by society. But how many realize, he asked, that what he does is
needed? The only recognition the trio ever gets is on May 1, the national
labor day.
The pay isn’t much: about 320 baht day. That’s more than
he earned when he began 20 years ago, however. Yet even though the pay has
improved, the work can still be dangerous and scams and corruption are still
commonplace, he said. To do the job, Charun said, people not only have to be
strong and tolerant to the sun, but stay away from drinking and gambling if
they hope to keep any of their income.
Ditch digging isn’t glamorous, Charun acknowledged, but it’s a job that
supports his family, as well as all of Thailand.
