"Industry, government representatives propose minimum wage decrease for garment workers", 14 September 2021

Employers and government representatives have countered union requests to raise the minimum wage for garment workers, instead arguing for a wage decrease in the second … negotiation meetings to set the minimum for 2022.

Ken Loo, secretary general of the industry group Garment Manufacturing Association of Cambodia, said the employers’ side of negotiations made its own calculations to conclude worker’s salaries should be reduced by 4.5%. Loo pointed to the economic effects of COVID-19 and said garment industry employers can’t afford to spend more on labor.

“We’re still negotiating. Our production decreased 10% … in exports, and next year employers have to pay for workers’ [National Social Security Fund] and retirement money,” he said. “The union still thinks our income is increasing, how can it be if our buyers decrease?”…

The current minimum wage for garment workers is $192. Ath Thorn, president of the Cambodian Labor Confederation … said employers had proposed a wage of $183.40. The government also advocated for a slight cut, with representatives using a technical calculation to present a wage of $191.90. Thorn said the union side is standing by its increased wage proposal of $214.20,…

… Pav Sina, head of the Collective Union of Movement of Workers (CUMW), said after the … negotiation meeting that all parties had debated their calculations of a minimum wage using the seven analysis points. These include social and economic factors such as inflation, cost of living, industry competitiveness, productivity, labor market conditions and sector profitability…