CAMBODIA: Strike threat over wages cut to garment workers
\nRadio Australia, Australia<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
A plan by the Cambodian Government to update the country’s labour law is being applauded by employers and condemned by a major union. The first change to be legislated is likely to affect the garment making industry by cutting the wages paid to night shift workers. The union is threatening a nationwide strike, while the government says the move will create many more jobs.<\/p>\n
Presenter\/Interviewer: Karon Snowdon
\nSpeakers: Ken Loo, Secretary General of the Garment Manufacturers Association of Cambodia; Chea Mony, Secretary of the Free Trade Union of Cambodia<\/p>\n
SNOWDON: Cambodia’s Prime Minister Hun Sen has made a promise.<\/p>\n
He says he can reduce poverty and create tens of thousands of new jobs in Cambodia’s major industry with a simple change to the labour law.<\/p>\n
All it needs is for workers in the garment industry to take a pay cut.<\/p>\n
The current labour law allows employees who work night shifts to get paid double the rate for a day shift.<\/p>\n
The new law would cut this by 70 per cent.<\/p>\n
Ken Loo is the Secretary General of the employers group, the Garment Manufacturers Association.<\/p>\n
He says the ten year old labour law is outdated and needs to change.<\/p>\n
LOO: Many companies are reluctant to start the night shift because of the exorbitant penalty rates.<\/p>\n
SNOWDON: If this new labour law does go through do you expect there’ll be renewed foreign investor interest in Cambodia?<\/p>\n
LOO: Definitely because for starters we would be able to start to attract a lot of the related industries, industries that we call the upstream and downstream industries. Not only in the garment industry but in other industries.<\/p>\n
SNOWDON: Cambodia’s garment making factories are the backbone of its economy, earning export income of more than 2-billion US dollars a year and employing over 300-thousand people.<\/p>\n
Ken Loo says only about ten thousand are now employed by factories working at night because of the high cost.<\/p>\n
Minimum daytime rates are guaranteed at 50 US dollars a month.<\/p>\n
Most workers are women who support families often in far-flung impoverished rural areas.<\/p>\n
The Head of the Free Trade Union, Chea Mony, says they find it hard to make ends meet now.<\/p>\n
He says speaking through an interpreter on a poor phone line that a survey of his members found their cost of living to be about 57 dollars a month.<\/p>\n
MONY: The amendment will be very bad effect and its not a good idea that the Government try to reduce poverty (in this way).<\/p>\n
SNOWDON: Union Secretary Chea Mony says the workforce will strike nationally if the amendment goes through the Parliament.<\/p>\n
Manufacturing representative Ken Loo says he also wants the new labour law to go further and include amendments to curtail union power.<\/p>\n
LOO: We need changes relating to the control and the behaviour of unions and what constitutes you know legal union activity.<\/p>\n
SNOWDON: Unions don’t only have wages and conditions to contend with.<\/p>\n
Violence against members and especially organisers has been on the rise in recent years with three union leaders murdered, sparking calls for an international investigation.<\/p>\n
Chea Mony whose Free Trade Union is associated with the Opposition party of Sam Rainsy blames pro-government forces for the violence.<\/p>\n
MONY: The reason is the workers don’t like the Government and the Government wants to win the election. So this is the reason they try and attack our union leaders.<\/p>\n
SNOWDON: Such claims are dismissed as fanciful by Ken Loo.<\/p>\n
LOO: But rather it relates to the general level of security in Cambodia.<\/p>\n
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CAMBODIA: Strike threat over wages cut to garment workers Radio Australia, Australia A plan by the Cambodian Government to update the country’s labour law is being applauded by employers and condemned by a major union. The first change to be legislated is likely to affect the garment making industry by cutting the wages paid to […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[1],"tags":[],"yoast_head":"\n