Labour Ministry's Annual Conference

Labour Ministry's Annual Conference

By Chea Sophal, 24 February 2009

Phnom Penh (Cambodia), 24 February 2009, The Ministry of Labour and Vocational Training (MOLVT) is conducting a two-day annual workshop at Chaktomok Theatre from 24 to 25 Febuary aiming to look at the achievements made and the raising objectives and strategies to eliminate the remaining and coming obstacles.

The conference is presided by Minister Vong Sauth who marked the opening of the conference. There are around 150 represenatives from International and National Organizations such United Nations Development Programme, World Bank, International Labor Organizations, and Union Representatives.

The Report on the Achievements of MOLVT for the 3rd Mandate and Its Objectives to be Continued highlighted the core achievements from 2004 to 2008. These areas of achievements include labor inspection, labour dispute resolution, employment and manpower, occupational health services, child labour reduction, social security, technical vocational education and training, and gender mainstreaming in labor and vocational training.

The report also reveals that the implementation of the Rectangular Strategy for Growth Labour Equity and Effectiveness in Cambodia of the Government has created many achievements to the national society in particular the construction of infrastructure, the establishment of special economic zones, the development of agricultural and agro-industrial sector, the development of tourism and service sector, the construction of educational establishment and hospitals ect.

Within this Government term, the Ministry performed 14,000 labour inspections and the Ministry found that more companies have paid attention to fulfill the formalities on the enterprises and carried out proper working conditions. Measures taken by the Ministry include penalizing 201 enterprises and transferring 77 files to the Court because those enterprises did not comply with the Labour Law.

There are 1,300 enterprises employing approximately 306,000 employees. 432 of those enterprises are garment and footwear factories which accommodate 280,000 workers, the report said. The Ministry also noticed that 207 garment and footwear enterprises employing around 75,000 workers closed completely and 236 new with approximately 62,000 employees opened.

The report further states that the global finanicial crisis in the U.S and European countries which are the most important markets of Cambodia for exporting the garment and footwear products, influenced to Cambodia markets. In the meantime, the same manufacturing countries such as China and Vietnam which have stronger potentials and easier access than Cambodia were exempted from prohibition of these products into the main markets from 2009 onwards. This issue will definitely be able to impact the eternity of Cambodia factories and will also be able to impact the employment of Cambodian people, the report pointed out.