Labor

Tens of thousands of workers protested in front of the Ministry of Labor on Monday, after negotiations between labor leaders and the government failed to find a resolution to demands of higher wages in the face of a rising cost of living. Labor Minister Ith ...

As mass demonstrations by garment factory workers continued Monday, the government laid out plans to bring an end to the labor unrest within the next three days, including suing union leaders in the courts and mobilizing security forces to take unspecified action. Signed by Council ...

Tuk-tuk, motorbike and taxi drivers were among hundreds of workers from Cambodia’s “informal economy” who called on the government yesterday to cap fuel prices at 4,000 riel ($1) per litre, amid claims that the current 5,000 riel price leaves them unable to cover any more ...

The Garment Manufacturers Association of Cambodia (GMAC) on Sunday said all of the country’s 400-plus garment factories will remain closed until the government and striking trade unions can guarantee the safety of the factories and all employees who want to work. The decision, outlined in an ...

Tens of thousands of Cambodian opposition supporters, backed by striking garment-factory workers, rallied on Sunday to demand long-serving Prime Minister Hun Sen step down and call an election. The garment workers have in recent days joined the opposition protests to press their demand that the government ...

SIHANOUKVILLE, Cambodia—In this quiet beach town, Lim Loeung says she spends up to 80 hours a week gluing soles onto shoes at a factory that does work for companies including Japanese sneaker-maker Asics Corp. 7936.TO +0.95% The factory believes Ms. Lim is at least 18 ...

Striking garment factory workers and protesting CNRP supporters should respect people of other nationalities and make sure they act within the boundaries of the law, Defense Minister Tea Banh said Thursday. Speaking at an opening ceremony for three new Royal Cambodian Armed Force science laboratory buildings, ...

Cambodian Minister of Labor Ith Samheng on Friday afternoon held an urgent talk with the representatives of six pro-opposition trade unions after they have led tens of thousands of workers off work in protest against low wage increase for 2014. As the meeting was going on, ...

The United Nations Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Cambodia, Surya P. Subedi, on Friday reiterated his call for calm and restraint as demonstrations are now taking place daily in Phnom Penh. “Demonstrations such as those of recent days and weeks are a ...

The economic fallout from garment worker protests and the industry’s response is expected to cost the key sector millions of dollars while tarnishing the country’s reputation among international buyers, interviews with suppliers and figures from previous periods of labour unrest show. Disputes over wages came to ...

The Garment Manufacturers Association of Cambodia (GMAC) on Thursday asked all its members to temporarily stop production operations this week due to concerns over security and safety after thousands of workers walked out of work in protest against the 19 percent wage hike in the ...

The Ministry of Labor and Vocational Training on Wednesday said that any activities made by the unions against the minimum wage of $95, agreed upon by the Labor Council, are against the law. After the wage talks yesterday, the Labor Council agreed to raise ...

A representative of the Zongtex Garment Manufacturing company in Phnom Penh on Tuesday denied employing workers as young as 15 to make U.S. government clothing, following an exposé by The New York Times on poor standards in factories producing U.S. government attire. On Sunday, The Times ...

An estimated 3,000 garment workers from various factories rallied at the capital’s Freedom Park on Wednesday to protest against the low wage hike for 2014. The strike was led by pro-opposition trade unions. It happened a day after the government decided to raise a monthly minimum ...

The Ministry of Labor hopes that a new Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) will see Cambodia resume sending domestic workers to Malaysia by February, but negotiations on the document have stalled after Malaysia recently rejected 90 percent of proposed provisions to protect workers’ rights. Most strikingly, Malaysia ...

Opposition leader Sam Rainsy on Monday visited thousands of workers from two special economic zones (SEZs) in Svay Rieng province who have been on strike over wages and working conditions since December 16. More than 25,000 workers from 36 factories in the Manhattan and Tai Seng ...

When unions and the Garment Manufacturers Association in Cambodia (GMAC) signed a memorandum of understanding in October last year, both sides were confident strikes in the Kingdom’s biggest export sector could be kept to a minimum. Not counting December, GMAC has recorded 131 strikes this ...

Ahead of today’s Ministry of Labour announcement of a minimum wage increase for Cambodia’s apparel sector, opposition leader Sam Rainsy yesterday urged striking workers in Svay Rieng province to hold out until their monthly salary is raised to $160. “[Garment] workers should not return to work ...

About 1,000 workers at a Kandal province garment factory walked off the job on Saturday after management there fired eight employees who attempted to start a new union. ...

A union official at the center of a strike that started last Monday and involves an estimated 30,000 workers from two special economic zones (SEZs) in Svay Rieng province said Sunday that he has no control over the strikers, and does not know when or ...

Local human rights group Adhoc has called on the government to investigate the alleged detention and torture of a Cambodian woman at a Bangkok casino where she was employed. In a statement released Friday, Adhoc said the government must push for a “full investigation” into the ...

A new program launched yesterday has its sights set on ending the endemic problem of sexual harassment against women in the workplace. A ceremony at the Hotel Cambodiana marked the start of Safe Workplaces, Safer Communities, a project run by CARE Cambodia. The three-year program, which will ...

Police briefly detained 13 garment factory workers on Thursday after about 20,000 workers, some throwing rocks, continued a strike that began Monday in Svay Rieng province’s Bavet City over wages and working conditions, a union official and police said. Union leaders had on Wednesday evening agreed ...

Garment industry, Cambodia’s largest foreign currency earner, reported a 22 percent surge in exports in the first 11 months of 2013, according to figures from the Ministry of Commerce on Thursday. The Southeast Asian nation exported apparel products in equivalent to 5.07 billion U.S. dollars during ...