Tin Mar Win's Story

Over a decade ago, I left my hometown of Yangon, Myanmar, for Mae Sot, in Thailand’s Tak province. I have a big family, and the minimum wage was not enough to support everyone, so I had to search for a new job opportunity. I returned to Myanmar after not being able to find a job, but I went back to Thailand again in 2009 to work as a domestic worker.

In 2009 and 2012, I had the opportunity to be trained as a Migrant Health Volunteer (MHV) at the Mae Sot Hospital. After the training, I was selected by the World Vision Foundation of Thailand (WVFT) to work on disseminating information on labour rights. I am very passionate about working as a volunteer, which is why I have been working with the WVFT for over six years. In 2018, I even upgraded my knowledge by participating in a training on birth registration for migrant workers in Thailand. 

I believe that most migrant workers lack information on their rights, entitlements and how to apply for jobs legally in Thailand. During the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, many migrants were faced with loss of income and food insecurity, further impacted by mobility restrictions. I started working again as a migrant health volunteer to provide cash assistance to migrant workers impacted by the pandemic. I am also encouraging other migrants to work as a volunteer to support our fellow migrant communities. 

I want to help my own kind. When people have better living conditions, it makes me happy. 

Tin Mar Win is one of 16 migrant health volunteers from Myanmar supporting the project ‘Direct Cash Assistance and Support to Migrant Workers Impacted by COVID-19 in Thailand’, jointly implemented by the International Organization for Migration (IOM) and the World Vision Foundation of Thailand, under the project Corporate Responsibility to Eliminate Slavery and Trafficking (CREST). CREST is an initiative that supports businesses in upholding the human and labour rights of migrant workers in key sectors and migration corridors funded by the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (SIDA).