Mininum wage increase for garment and footwear workers

March 21, 2013
By Chea Sophal

Phnom Penh: Minister of Social Affairs today issues a press release on minimum wage increase to $80 for garment and footwear workers resulting from the 8th-Ministerial Working Group discussion.

The 21-Mar-2013 Press Release indicates that the new minimum wage will be implemented by May 1, 2013.  The wage increase came from the employers' agreement to increase the wage to $73 and with the intervention from Cambodian Prime Minister to add another $2.  In total, the $5 health allowance is added up to $75 to become the new minimum wage.

"The Labour Advisory Committee will work out the details of the wage increase on 29 March 2013", the Press Release said.

Women's Day -- Unite to End Violence Against Women

March 7, 2013

By Chea Sophal

Phnom Penh: To celelbrate the coming International Women's Day on 8 March, the ILO is releasing a feature article "When work becomes a sexual battleground" highlighting a story of Sisandra, who is 28, and experienced a sexaul harassment at the workplace. 

 “My executive manager came to the office and asked for my number and I gave it to him. I did not ask him why he wanted my number as he is a senior person and respected by all in the company because of his position. He then started touching my breast and private parts.”

Read the full article: "When work becomes a sexual battleground"

The U.N are also releasing the figures in relation to sexaul harassment and violence against women as following: 

Violence by an intimate partner

• In Australia, Canada, and Israel 40 to 70 per cent of female murder victims were killed by their partners, according to the World Health Organization.
• In the United States, one-third of women murdered each year are killed by intimate partners.
• In South Africa, a woman is killed every six hours by an intimate partner.
• In India, 22 women were killed each day in dowry-related murders in 2007.
• In Guatemala, two women are murdered, on average, each day.

Sexual violence

• According to the World Health Organization, the proportion of women suffering sexual violence by non-partners after the age of 15 varies from less than 1 per cent in Ethiopia andBangladesh to between 10 and 12 per cent in Peru, Samoa and the United Republic of Tanzania. 
•  In Canada a study of adolescents aged 15 to 19 found that 54 per cent of girls had experienced “sexual coercion” in a dating relationship.
• In Switzerland, 22.3 per cent of women experience sexual violence by non-partners in their lifetime.
  
  For full report and figures, see Violence Against Women, United Nations Secretary - General's Campaign: Unite to End Violence Against Women. 
  
  
   

Labour Inspectors Network in Cambodia: Labour Inspection: Thais to follow Brazil's lead

Labour Inspectors Network in Cambodia: Labour Inspection: Thais to follow Brazil's lead: Bangkok Post 25 Feb 2013 at 00.00     The International Labour Organisation (ILO) has praised Brazil as a role model in cracking down on ch...

OSH Day--A chance to win more 8-month wages for workers

By Chea Sophal
March 2, 2013

Phnom Penh: 2 March 2013, Cambodian garment industry contributes annually a four billion U.S dollar to the economy.  The industry employes almost 500,000 workers.  To celebrate the world day on occupational health and safety on 28 April 2013, Cambodia workers both in the garment and footwear factories would  contest and have opportunity to win the first prize of $500, $300 for second prize and $200 for the third prize.

They will be taking part in the competition on  fire safety in which they could think of practical, inexpensive steps that can be taken to improve fire safety in their own factories.  The forms of submissions include as the following: