The number of migrant workers from Mon State continues to rise due to the scarcity of career prospects and challenges for livelihood after the military coup, the aid workers who assist the laborers told Than Lwin Times.

The reasons for the increase in the rate of migrant workers are the outflow of foreign investment after the military coup, the closure of most local businesses, the scarcity of job opportunities and low domestic wages.

A person who helps with labor affairs said that the rate of migration is rising due to the exorbitant rise in domestic prices, income and expenditure imbalances, and living system crises.

According to information from labor agencies and labor aid organizations, there are at least 400,000 migrant workers after the military coup, and hundreds of thousands are preparing to leave the country.

Young individuals between the ages of 18 and 25 make up the majority of them. Only 10% of young people went abroad legally, with the remaining 90% crossing the border illegally.

"There are no young people in the villages anymore. Both boys and girls are working in Thailand, and in rural areas, there are only children, adults, and middle-aged people, and there is a shortage of workers," said a businessman.

According to the 2019 Myanmar inter-censual survey, there are more than 1.6 million Myanmar people working abroad.

Most of them work in Thailand and Malaysia, and some go to other countries, including Singapore, Japan, and Korea.

At least 500,000 people from Mon State, which has a population of over two million, are working abroad.