BANGKOK: The death of a female employee at an unidentified company in Samut Prakan has sparked outrage after it was revealed that she had been denied sick leave.
The employee, who died while being treated at a hospital in Pak Nam, had told a friend about the difficulty in taking sick leave due to her previous absences. This conversation on the Line application was shared on the Facebook page named E-Sor Khayee Khao (E-Sor crushing news) on Monday (Sept 16).
The post quickly went viral, with most netizens blaming the boss for not allowing the woman to take sick leave. However, some pointed out that the death may have been due to the hospital’s failure to treat the symptoms.
Meanwhile, the woman’s parents told Nation TV that they would take their daughter’s body back to their home in Sukhothai’s Khiri Mat district for cremation.
The father, 55-year-old Amarin, said his daughter had died due to ulcerative colitis, adding that she worked hard to support her family.
He said he knew his daughter worked at a factory in the Bangpoo Industrial Estate, bud did not know which one.
Rungsan Wongboonnak, deputy chief of Samut Prakan Public Health Office, said the case will be investigated and more information about the patient’s treatment will be sought from the hospital.
Pattanachat Chumthong, chief of Samut Prakan’s Department of Labour Protection and Welfare, said employees are allowed to take sick leave of up to 30 days per year. He added that employers can ask for a medical certificate if the sick leave exceeds three days.
Meanwhile, Kantiha Sribuachum, who oversees the Samut Prakan Social Security Office, said the relatives can ask for a one-time payment of 50,000 baht (US$1,500) to cover funeral charges and also ask for her contributions to the social security scheme.
She added that the authorities will investigate to see if the employee had died due to treatment failure at the hospital or because she had been denied time off to seek treatment in time. - The Nation/ANN
