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As per latest reports from Ministry of Industry (Cambodia), exports of garment and footwear from Cambodia have noted an increase of 13 per cent year-on-year to US $ 1.55 billion in the first quarter of current year.
In the year 2015, the Southeast Asian country’s exports of garment and footwear generated US $ 7.1 billion in revenues, up 14.5 per cent compared with 2014 when apparel and footwear export value stood at around US $ 6 billion. Western markets, particularly the US, Canada and European countries are the key export destinations for Cambodia.
The country has performed well in the first three months of the year despite the wage issue that has been creating hurdles in the clothing sector of the country. However, the Cambodian garment units have increased the minimum wage of workers which currently stands at US $ 140 per month.
Cambodian clothing and footwear sector accounts for about 80 per cent of the country’s overall export. The sector is comprised of more than 1,000 factories with around 754,000 workers.
A file photo of a similar incident that took place in Svay Rieng province last year. | Courtesy: https://www.phnompenhpost.com/
In yet another garment worker truck accident in Cambodia, 64 people were injured when the truck they were travelling in turned over, following a tyre burst, in Kampong Speu province on Wednesday.
According to the police, the truck was loaded with 75 people, which was far beyond its actual capacity, leading to one of its rear tires to explode and resulting in the truck to tip-over.
Several of the workers have been critically injured, authorities have said.
Incidentally, this happens to be the same area where two trucks carrying garment workers crashed in January this year, killing five people and injuring 65.
According to the police, the workers in Wednesday’s incident were employed at a Taiwanese-owned factory in nearby Kampong Chhnang that produces shoes.
Apparel and footwear industry is Cambodia’s biggest export-earning sector, employing about 700,000 people in more than 700 garment and shoe factories, including those that supply major Western brands like Gap, H&M, Adidas and Nike.
Cambodia’s new trade union law does little to alleviate the troubles of the garment factory workers, with the fear of violent agitations becoming imminent with each day due to the poor labour practices that remain within the system.
While the factory workers are getting restless, relations between both the ruling party and the opposition kept getting worse.
Five years since its drafting, the Cambodian National Assembly and the Cambodian Senate passed the controversial trade union law in April to regulate the country’s 3,400 trade unions, which has so far drawn much flak from both the domestic and international trade unionists, besides human activists.
The bone of contention in the trade union law has been the clauses that exclude informal workers and public servants from its purview. Besides, the law also requires unions to disclose their finances to the government as well as increases the minimum threshold of workers required for union formation from 10 to 20 per cent for any given factory.
Apart from these clauses, the issue of labour malpractices exist within the system, leading to workers getting abused or mistreated at work. So much so, a worker is first needed to seek permission from their factory owner before staging a protest. They can even be arrested for disrupting production, making it more difficult for workers to strike work.
Defending the new trade union law, Minister of Labour Ith Sam Heng claimed it “would bring stability and bigger investments”.
The ruling Cambodia People’s Party (CCP), backed by the factory owners, has long blamed the trade unions for poor relations, condemning strikes for having ruined performance of several sectors in the country, while the Cambodia National Rescue Party (CNRP), which has a large support base of garment workers, garnered 2.9 million votes and 55 seats in the Parliament, following the July 2013 general election.
Cambodia’s growth of the garment industry has diminished substantially in recent times. Foreign investment has become a dire necessity for sustaining the industry, which has become a far cry in the face of frequent strikes, which has become pretty regular in the country. Adding to this situation, the unfavourable trade union law only goes to increase the chances of violent protests.
Besides, the pressure on factory owners to keep the labour wages low to cut costs creates an environment conducive of potential protests. Meanwhile, the rising competition from neighbouring countries like Myanmar and Vietnam puts businesses of this country in a difficult spot.
In view of the recent growth in demand for air shipments of consumer goods like textiles, garments and footwear from Cambodia, several foreign airlines are adding air freight services to this southeast Asian country.
Malaysian national cargo carrier Raya Airways and Dubai’s Emirates Sky Cargo are among the recent ones to expand its cargo service to Cambodia.
According to Cambodia Airports that manages the country’s three international airports, the volume of air freight to and from the Cambodian capital Phnom Penh has risen by 14 per cent in 2015 to 38,065 tonnes.
With the recent growth in economy, cargo services had been generally expanding. Over the past decade, GDP growth has averaged about 7.7 per cent a year, one of the fastest in the world, says Sinn Chanserey Vutha, spokesman for the State Secretariat of Civil Aviation (SSCA).
Raya Airways is the second dedicated cargo carrier to start running regular services to Cambodia, after Cathay Pacific Cargo, which initiated operations back in November 2014. The cargo carrier’s decision to add service to Phnom Penh was influenced by Cambodia’s growing garment and footwear sector that led to a substantial rise in import and export activities.
Total air freight shipments to and from Cambodia in 2015 was more than 38,000 tonnes, a 14 per cent rise over the previous year.
Raya Airways started its first flight to Phnom Penh on March 26. It has been operating a Boeing 727-200, which has a cargo payload capacity of 22 tonnes, on a circular route from Kuala Lumpur to Phnom Penh via Kuching and Kota Kinabalu, then back direct to Kuala Lumpur, company spokesperson Siti Rozalina Mohd Noor said.
“The main commodities are garments bound for the EU and US, and we are working with other airline operators to forward them to their final destination from our hub in Kuala Lumpur,” she said.
Raya Airways operates out of Malaysia’s Sultan Abdul Aziz Shah Airport near Kuala Lumpur using a fleet of four Boeing aircraft, with two more aircraft expected for delivery by the end of the year.
The airlines will increase its flight frequency to Cambodia to two times a week. The fleet and route expansions are part of the freight carrier’s plan to triple the volume of transported cargo from 30,000 tonnes to 100,000 tonnes in the next five years, according to a Raya statement last month.
Meanwhile, Emirates Sky Cargo is expanding with a weekly MD-11F flight capable of carrying 80 tonnes.
“Cambodia’s air cargo market is growing at a robust rate with Europe and the United States being key export markets,” Emirates SkyCargo Senior Vice-President Hiran Perera said.
Foreign airlines understand that to keep up with the competitive market, they need to provide what the market needs, and cargo shipments bring in the maximum revenue for them. With Cambodia’s rising export potential, it was but natural that foreign airlines would want to make the most of it.
According to Cambodia Airports Communications & Marketing Director Khek Norinda, the volume of cargo at the Phnom Penh airport has grown by 17 per cent in the first three months of this year from the same period last year, a large portion of which comprised garments and footwear. Leather has been a major import.
The Cambodian government has finally gone ahead with the controversial draft union labour law, a move that labour activists fear would curb their power to protect the garment workers, who are the the backbone of the economy.
According to Ath Thorn, president of the Coalition of Cambodian Apparel Workers’ Democratic Union, “The government wants to restrict our rights by creating this law. The law will limit our work… and employers can request for the dissolution of unions or find ways to block unions from protesting.”
Although the government said the law would help regulate the country’s 3,400 trade unions, Unionists and international labour rights groups speculate that the law would dilute the power of labour groups in the sector. The law will affect around 7,000 garment workers of the Cambodia’s US$ 7 billion textile industry.
The critics have raised concerns over a few provisions of the law that mandate unions to report their finances to the government each year, as well as grant authorities further powers to close down labour groups. The draft law still needs approval by the Senate, but its passage is certain since the Upper House is dominated by the ruling party lawmakers.
The draft union law has been a long-standing issue, with several protests and demonstrations taking place over its passage. It is believed to subjugate the rights of unions. Meanwhile, Prime Minister Hun Sen, who has ruled Cambodia for more than three decades and tolerates little dissent, has frequently clashed with unions over the issue.
Minister of Labour Ith Sam Heng holds a meeting with his officials in Phnom Penh, on the trade union draft law at the Ministry. / Image Courtesy: https://www.phnompenhpost.com
While the Cambodian National Assembly is all set to decide on the fate of the trade union law on Monday, it is still unclear to most of the industrial workers, including those working in garments factories, whether this would be in their interest or go against it.
Several, small demonstrations during lunch breaks continue to take place, and a petition has also been sent by them to the prime minister through the social media.
“I just heard in the news about [the union law], but I don’t know about it in detail, whether it will advantage or disadvantage us,” a worker said during her lunch break in Phnom Penh’s Russey Keo district earlier this week. This seems to be a common idea among most people across the country.
While critics widely believe that this law is meant to suppress the workers’ freedom at large, Cambodia’s larger and more prominent independent unions have assumed a rather wait-and-watch approach, at least until Monday, when they have decided to mobilise the workers to go on a mass scale protest.
Way back in July last year, Ministry of Labour spokesman Heng Sour had said that the law, which had been in its draft stage for over eight years, is aimed at regulating the Kingdom’s 3,400 trade unions.
Trade unions, which had so far triggered large scale rallies and protests on issues like minimum wages, did not seem to have the same impact on or even the enthusiasm to draw the same kind of reaction from the workers about this draft law. The issue still remains a little vague with respect to its impact on garment workers, who face more immediate day-to-day concerns.
Among all the trade unions, it seemed like Cambodian Alliance of Trade Unions (CATU) was the only body that have recently called for a nationwide strike ahead of the National Assembly’s vote.
“Most of the unions don’t support my voice,” CATU president Yang Sophorn said. “They agreed to only hold small protests in front of factories at break time by raising a banner or poster.”
According to her, the other unions are “afraid that workers would not follow them on the union law, as it was not the minimum wage”
“If union leaders explain in detail the important issues that [workers] are facing, like losing their rights and freedom when the union law is implemented, [workers] will strike on these issues,” she added.
However, despite being a unionist for more than a decade, she doesn’t speak on behalf of all workers, which is apparent when one does a ground check. Barely a handful of workers have even heard about the union law, while others who have, don’t really know what it really is and how it may impact their life and livelihood.
Cambodian garment workers unclear about the consequence of the labour law which is currently in its draft stage. A file photo of workers’ agitation on the outskirts of Phnom Penh, Cambodia. / Image Courtesy: https://gdb.voanews.com
“I don’t know what the union law means. The union leader in the factory did not tell me,” says a worker in Phnom Penh’s Russey Keo district’s industrial area. Most of them are living one day at a time and expect the their union leaders to guide them when and as needed.
With lobbying efforts on the ground having had little impact so far, local and international unions and rights groups hope that major brands will do something to influence the law before Monday’s vote.
Carin Leffler, urgent appeals coordinator at the international office of the Netherlands-based Clean Clothes Campaign, “As big buyers, they should have used their influence, collectively and individually, and in all possible ways,” she has reportedly said to a local news media. “They should voice their concern in public if they seriously want to see a law that respects worker’s most fundamental rights.
“We are really puzzled as to why they are so quiet on this issue, considering the fact that they have so vocal on other issues like higher wages for garment workers,” she added.
Meanwhile, the ILO is also playing the wait-and-watch game.
“We have communicated to the national government our comments on the law to be given to the National Assembly when it looks into the law on Monday,” said Maurizio Bussi, a director with the ILO’s decent work and technical support team for East and South East Asia and the Pacific.
Hundreds of workers of Win Shingtex, a Cambodian garment factory, have sought the help of the country’s Prime Minister Hun Sen in securing the money they believe the company owes to them under their contracts.
This took place on the backdrop of the ongoing garment workers strike taking place in the country. The factory workers travelled to central Phnom Penh to meet the Prime Minister, asking for their intervention in securing the money, the company reportedly owes them.
The issue came to light when the Hong-Kong based factory abruptly winded off its business, terminating 550 employee contracts, citing “lack of orders”.
The notice mentions the company’s inability to carry on the business saying “Our company did not receive new orders from abroad this year. That is why our garment factory cannot continue the production process.”
Pal Makara, a Win Shingtex employee and representative of the Coalition of Cambodian Apparel Workers Democratic Union at the factory, said the workers are demanding their full wages until the last day of their work, including their bonuses and severance. Meanwhile, the company has offered to pay only half the amount sought by the workers.
Rejecting the company’s proposal on behalf of the garment workers, Makara said, “We cannot accept it (the proposal), because the company is violating the Labor Law and cheating workers.”
Thereafter, the workers decided to approach the Prime Minister, seeking help over the issue. Although the Prime Minister could not be reached, Pal Chandara, a member of the prime minister’s Cabinet, met them and accepted their petition.
“I will try to find a solution, in discussion with the Labor Ministry officials this afternoon, and will inform you tomorrow or the day after,” Pal Chandra assured.
Ministry of Labour is organising a beauty pageant for garment workers in Cambodia. The government has teamed with the Garment Manufacturers Association in Cambodia (GMAC) and PNN TV for the purpose.
The competition aims to “promote the beauty of the garment sector” and requires participants to be at least 1.58 metres tall (or 1.62 metres for men). The reward for the first place is prize of US$300 – more than double the $140 monthly minimum wage of a garment worker.
Last year, one horrific incident took place in which 18 garment factory workers lost their lives when the van that carried them crashed. Owing to last year’s gruesome incident, the government is also being criticized for again organising such an event.
In this regard, William Conklin, Country Director at the Solidarity Center, said “The Ministry of Labour is trying to help promote the image of garment workers, but I think that there are other concerns they should concentrate on, such as road transport safety and … fainting in factories.”
However, Opposition lawmaker and women’s rights activist Mu Sochua said the contest was undignified. “The only contest that should be conducted for the dignity of our garment workers is for the brands to compete on the wages of the workers: ‘Who dares give the workers a living wage’,”
Meanwhile, the workers are looking at the contest with a different angle where Sous Vanna, 25, said “It is a good chance for garment workers to compete on TV,” Apart from showing off my beauty, I will tell of my life working in a garment factory, so the public can know about our lives. Our life is a struggle in this sector.”
Cambodia’s Ministry of Labour has instructed all factory owners in the country to make sure there is sufficient ventilation inside the facilities, now that the temperatures are rising across the country.
The Ministry has also insisted that workers should be provided with an environment conducive to proper functioning of a human-driven industry like textile and garments. The government has ordered them to put proper evacuation and fire safety plans in place, in a bid to avoid any mishaps on their premises.
During the Summer season, incidents of fire and workers fainting due to intolerable heat within the factories isn’t unheard of.
Minister of Labor Ith Samheng had, in a statement last week, cited nine key points for companies, particularly those in garment and footwear business, to follow to prevent incidents of workers fainting while working within the facilities, which seems to have become a monthly occurrence.
“Factories, enterprises and industries need to take care and make sure workers have access to ventilation systems in the buildings for at least an hour before starting work. They have to put thermometers in place to measure the heat in the workplace to make it easier to track the rising heat,” Samheng said.
According to government policy, factories are forbidden from blocking air flow into the interiors of the facility in any way. He directed the factory owners to open doors and windows or put extra fans in the building when temperatures rise. They should also make sure there is a working watering system on the roof of buildings at least twice a day or put more nets on roofs to reduce the heat.
“Factories must provide clean water to employees, carefully check fire prevention systems and protection equipment in the building and ensure that all the systems and all the equipment work in case of an emergency. Make sure these systems are regularly inspected,” the minister added.
Amid fears among workers of Singaporean-owned Bright Sky factory that they may lose their jobs, with the factory switching from garment to bag manufacturing, over 200 garment workers were locked inside the garment manufacturing facility, located in Cambodia’s capital city Phnom Penh’s Por Sen Chey district, on Monday.
President of the Workers Development Union Federation Tep Ton said the factory workers were prevented from striking after the employer kept the doors between 11am and 3pm. “They are afraid of changing jobs from clothes to bag sewing,” he said. “If someday they don’t sew the bag well, they will face a fall-out from their job.”
According to him, the factory had not provided enough training to workers to help them switch over to bag manufacturing, leaving the workers worried about their job security.
Toun Phearum, a factory worker, said he found the doors locked when he returned from lunch. “Today, we wanted to get out of the factory to voice our demands,” he said, referring to workers’ demands in view of the change in production.
Bun Vath, a Bright Sky administrator, said the company authorities had locked the doors when the unions arrived to protect the workers. “We wanted to ensure their safety during working hours,” he said. He said that the company had taken to making bags since the end of 2015 and that the bags simply made up the bulk of orders the factory was now taking.
“If [workers] want to continue with the job, they can, but if they did not want to continue, they could ask to stop [working],” he said.
About 50 garment workers in Kandal province had, meanwhile, queued up to get their “salaries” that they claim the Thein Thien factory owes them. The factory shut down in August last year.
“We have been waiting for the court’s decision, but now [the workers] can’t wait anymore with so many months gone by,” Yong Phany, president at the Democratic Independent Solidarity Union Federation, said.
The Cambodian garment industry is plagued with issues like rise in vehicular accidents, which now pose an imminent threat to the industry. The recent multi-vehicle crash in southwest Cambodia made the issue, concerning the security of garment workers in the country’s biggest industry, more prominent.
One man was killed and at least 34 garment workers were injured when a container truck collided with a van loaded with garment workers at a high speed, leading to a multi-vehicle crash on a National Road in Preah Sihanouk province of Cambodia. The container truck had swerved to one side in order to avoid a crash between two other trucks, but ended up hitting the van instead.
Expressing concerns over the garment workers’ accident, William Conklin, Cambodia Country Director of the United States-based Solidarity Center, said, “These accidents happen because other vehicles are not obeying traffic laws and a few proactive measures are necessary ensuring security of the garment workers. “Could the brands provide insurance for their workers in case of an accident? There needs to be an incentive,” he added.
The Labour Ministry also released a statement regarding the issue, stating that three of the injured garment workers had been sent to a hospital in Phnom Penh. Although Cambodia’s US$5.7-billion garment industry has grown over the past few years – alongside the unsafe transport of workers – crashes have become emblematic of a sector, whose approximately 700,000 workers earn a $128 minimum wage.
Cambodia’s apparel and footwear exports for the year 2015 have risen by 6.7 per cent. The latest apparel and footwear export figures from the country have reached US $ 6.5 billion. Out of the total Cambodian apparel and footwear exports, over 85 per cent accounted for apparels.
The country’s main trading partner for this category remains Europe, on account of the GSP facility that Cambodia enjoys. As a result, close to 40 per cent of the produce (worth approximately US $ 2.4 billion) from the Cambodian apparel and footwear factories was exported to the EU. The US is the country’s second biggest market, its Cambodian apparel imports reportedly being worth US $ 1.65 billion.
The growth can be attributed to the recent investments in the market. Market estimates enlist close to 80 new production units that came up in the course of the year fuelled this growth of the Cambodian apparel and footwear sector. Nevertheless, investment is expected to slow down in 2016, with US $ 167 million allocated to 38 projects, as opposed to US $ 332 million for 57 projects last year, reports CF Group.
It is estimated that the Cambodian apparel industry generates more than 700,000 jobs in 1,200 workshops making it a mainstay of Cambodian economy. The sector’s significance pushed the Cambodian Government to forestall potential strikes by passing a bill last autumn which bolstered trade union law.
