Labour Ministry’s Annual Conference

By Chea Sophal
12 March 2010

Phnom Penh (Cambodia): Ministry of Labour and Vocational Training (MOLVT) is holding its annual two-day Ministry’s retreat from 11 to 12 March 2010 at Chaktomok Threat. The Ministry will spend these two days to review the achievements made in 2009 and set its targets for 2010. The conference was presided over by Minister Vong Sauth who marked the opening of the conference and by H.E. Men Sam An, Deputy Prime Minister, in the closing ceremony.

H.E. Kan Man, Secretary of State, MOLVT, highlighted the performances made in 2009 as follows:

• There were 45,464 workers losing jobs as a result of closures of 106 factories and there were other 66 factories which suspended their operations. The suspensions of work in the factories also made additional 38,124 workers (24,462 females) lose their jobs. There were 48 new enterprises opening which employ 16,886 employees (15,186 females) in 2009. The Ministry’s report pointed out that most of the factories were bankrupt and there were no enough orders which were caused by the impact of financial crisis in the United States and Europe. The two places have been the main market places of Cambodia. Based on 2008 report, The Ministry noticed that 207 garment and footwear enterprises employing around 75,000 workers closed completely and 236 new with approximately 62,000 employees opened in 2008.

• While inspecting the labour compliance, the Labour Inspectors would make the minutes in order to fine or to file the complaints to the court if the enterprises were found not in compliance with the limitations. Throughout 2009, there were limitations issues for 854 enterprises/institutions.

• 186 cases of disputes were settled under the Labor Dispute Resolution Department, 75 of which were healed and 111 cases unhealed. 181 cases were sent to the Arbitration Council and one case was considered as null and void.

• There were 167 professional organizations registered in 2009. Up to now, there have been 1,740 professional organizations.

• The Department of Occupational and Health inspected the hygiene and safety conditions for 1,225 times among 682 enterprises.

• The Department of Child Labour withdrawn and protected 4,086 children from working the agricultural sector, including 2,247 girls and 1,839 boys. In cooperation with WINROK’s Cambodia, the Department had publicized with the Garment Manufacturers’ Association of Cambodia and union confederations for 2 times, with the intention to strengthen the procedures to recruit the employees at the age of 15 to under 18, and the procedures for serving as workers in the enterprises/establishments and in the informal economy in line with the context of decent works.

• The National Social Security Fund secretariat has accommodated 983 enterprises by the end of 2009 with 397,046 (343, 291 females) registered workers. Among these workers, 351,980 (316,842 females) worked in the garment and footwear industries. There were 884 enterprises that had paid the contributions, equal to 98.9%. 2,652 cases of the occupational risks have been reported and based on the results of the survey, there were 2,,423 occupational injuries, 2,223 were minor injuries, 176 were serious and 16 were fatal. There were 163 non-occupational injuries.

The Ministry of Labour also placed outline for its targets in 2010 through this annual retreat in order to implement the workplan of the Rectangular Strategy, Phase II 2009-2010. Some of crucial tasks to be performed in 2010 by MOLVT include:

a. Continuing job creations, establishing the public system for overseas employment and protecting migrant workers, participating in creating employment, improving the decent work in the informal economy, establishing the labour institutes and setting up the research committee and disseminating the information of the enterprises.

b. Paying close attention to the improvement of labour conditions for workers in all sectors, maintaining good conditions in workplaces, improving and promoting the procedures to exercise the freedom of professional organizations by making efforts to draft the union laws, strengthening the harmonization between employees and employers, strengthening the national health and safety network, pushing for the activities for health and occupational safety, and trying to re-set up the minimum wage for the workers based on the national and international economic situation.

c. Pushing for the development of technical and vocational training for the people intending to alleviate the poverty, developing the national standard qualification framework, developing the labour market information system, and continuing to establish the National Employment Agency (NEA) and the job centers in some more institutions.

d. Paying attention to carry out the strategic plan of gender mainstreaming in the sectors that the Ministry has set out in Rectangular Strategy, Phase II 2009-2010, and

e. Strengthening the effectiveness and safety of administration and management of social works and development of human resources, increasing the staff framework, monitoring and evaluating the implementation of action plans.

In her closing remarks on 12 March 2010, H.E. Men Sam An, recalled the recommendations made by Prime Minister Hun Sen on readiness to cope with unexpected crisis that may happen due to the global climate change, as having seen the examples from the global financial crisis and the impact of workers as a result of factories’ closures and suspensions. There should be officials and resources ready to divert and solve these impacts by providing vocational training and other support until those workers can go back to work or other sectors can absorb those workers.

H.E. Men Sam An and H.E. Vong Sauth marked the closing of Ministry’s annual conference by providing the award medals to the key Ministry’s officials and other international organizations’ representatives who had brought great achievement for the Ministry as well as for Cambodian society. Mr. Tuomo Poutiainent, Chief Technical Advisor, ILO Better Factories Cambodia, and Mr. Joseph Menacherry, Chief Technical Advisor, ILO IPEC, were awarded the medals.

NB: I had the opportunity to attend this annual conference and this is what I can share for any further information on the other aspects, you may contact the Ministry’s official directly since this short note is not a full report on achievements made in 2009 by MOLVT. Contact me if you have any questions.