Cambodian factory workers may see higher minimum wages after a meeting between the local trade unions, the Minister of Social Affairs and Minister of Labor, and the Garment Manufacturers Association of Cambodia. Initial negotiations took place on Jan.21st.
The garment sector is Cambodia’s largest earner of foreign currency, and is still growing–in the first nine months of 2012, garment exports rose 9.9%. Still, the minimum wage for Cambodian garment workers is one of the lowest in Asia, at $66 a month. Worker strikes and protests have become increasingly frequent, and demonstrators have taken to the streets, congregating outside of building affiliated with the Western apparel industry.
No official decisions about the wage increase will be made until a second meeting between trade leaders, scheduled to be held in late February.