Cambodian Confederation Union denied recognition again

The Cambodian Confederation of Unions has been shot down again in its bid for formal recognition as a trade union confederation, president Rong Chhun said yesterday, this time because some of its unions represent teachers. The Ministry of Labour informed the CCU in a letter obtained by the Post yesterday that its application for recognition – which would have granted it more bargaining power – had been rejected, following a similarly unsuccessful application in 2006. “After checking the document requesting the licence for [CCU], the Ministry of Labour and Vocational training has seen that . . . some of the members represented in this confederation union are not covered under the Labour Law,” the letter states. CCU comprises seven unions and associations that represent more than 90,000 workers. Its unions include the Cambodian Independent Teachers’ Association – whose members’ right to unionise is not protected under the Labour Law – the Federation of Cambodian Intellectuals and Students, and the Professors Council Association. … Such refusals were discrimination against hundreds of thousands of civil servants, including doctors and nurses, and contravened an International Labour Organisation convention protecting the right to freedom of association, Rong Chhun said. …

Shane Worrell and Mom Kunthear, P. 1
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