Developing human resources for the technical workforce: a comparative study of Korea and Thailand

Asian countries face significant and growing shortages of technically skilled workers. Vocational-technical systems are key components of national human resource development. Using labor market data from Thailand and Korea, this paper analyzes the economic payoff for individual investment in vocational-technical education, and subsequent employment in a related occupation. The results are mixed, showing that relatively few men or women end up working in areas that they are trained for, but that for men in Korea and women in Thailand, employment in a related field pays off in terms of higher monthly earnings. As governments move toward work-force policy created in conjunction with firms and education, the results of this study reinforce the need for national development plans that address the relatively weak relationship between initial training and employment in Asian countries.