Cambodian garment manufacturers, trade unionists talk over pay rise with no agreement

16 December 2013
Xinhuanet News
Economic policy and administration / Economy and commerce / Garments and textiles / Government / Industries / Labor / Labor arbitration / Labor policy and administration / Ministries and other national bodies / Ministry of Commerce / Ministry of Labour and Vocational Training / Social development / Unions
Ath Thon / Coalition of Cambodian Apparel Workers Democratic Union / Garment Manufacturers Association of Cambodia / GMAC / Government-Private Working Group on Industrial Relations / Ith Samheng / Minister of Labor Ith Samheng / Ministry of Commerce / Ministry of Labor / Nang Sothy / National Union Alliance Chamber of Cambodia

Cambodia’s garment manufacturers and trade unionists on Monday began a negotiation on pay rise for garment workers in 2014 but reached no any agreement because the union representatives demanded to double the current wage. The talk was made between the employers represented by Nang Sothy, co-chair of the Government-Private Working Group on Industrial Relations and Ken Loo, secretary general of Garment Manufacturers Association of Cambodia (GMAC), and representatives of the kingdom’s trade unions under the presence of Labor Minister Ith Samheng. Ath Thon, president of the Coalition of Cambodian Apparel Workers’ Democratic Union, demanded the GMAC to raise the minimum wage of workers to 154 U.S. dollars a month from the current 80 U. S. dollars. Garment industry is the country’s largest foreign exchange earner, accounting for about 80 percent of the country’s overall exports. The sector comprises about 500 factories with some 510, 600 workers. The country exported garment products in equivalent to 4.66 billion U.S. dollars in the first 10 months of this year, up 22 percent year-on-year, according to a report of the commerce ministry.

 Xinhuanet News Staff
http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/world/2013-12/16/c_132972280.htm