Labor Leaders Say Negotiations Should Continue
International trade leaders say Cambodia’s workers and managers should continue to negotiate for an increase in wages, despite a deadly crackdown on worker protests earlier this month.
Workers want a raise in the minimum wage to $160 per month to keep up with the rising cost of living in Cambodia. Demonstrations turned violent on Jan. 2 and Jan. 3, ending in a shooting by police that left at least four people dead and nearly 40 injured. Cathy Feingold, director of the International Department of the AFL-CIO, a federation of US labor unions, told VOA Khmer they had issued a letter to Prime Minister Hun Sen condemning the crackdown. …The statement from the AFL-CIO adds to growing criticism of the government’s handling of worker demonstrations. And it puts increased pressure on the industry to resolve the wage problem in a sector where some 400,000 Cambodians are employed.
In an open letter earlier this month, six US and Canadian retail associations urged an end to violence against workers and for wage negotiations to continue. The letter was signed by the Retail Council of Canada, the American Apparel & Footwear Association, the US Fashion Industry Association, the Retail Industry Leaders Association, the Canadian Apparel Federation, and National Retail Federation. …International calls for negotiations and a resolution have been echoed by local labor leaders.
Chea Mony, president of the Free Trade Union, said these amounted to serious pressure from outside the country that should push Cambodia towards more respect for human rights and the rights of workers. …The current pressure for improved human rights, not tied to diplomacy, from Europe, the US, retailers and unions “is somewhat unprecedented,” he said. “It may show that the international community has grown increasingly tired of the status quo, and they’re replacing hollow words with swift action.” …
Sok Khemara, VOA Khmer
http://www.voacambodia.com/content/labor-leaders-say-negotiations-should-continue/1837064.html
