The National Council on Minimum Wage (NCMW) will hold a series of meetings from mid-September onwards to negotiate the 2022 minimum wage for workers in the textile, garment and footwear sectors.
In a statement issued on September 7, NCMW said it had held online discussions on the minimum wage and organisational structure of NCMW for the second mandate. It has selected Kim Chansamnang to serve as deputy chief to represent workers and Nang Sothy as deputy head to represent employers.
In addition, NCMW also presented key statistical updates on socio-economic criteria in the context of Covid-19 with stakeholders to form the basis for the 2022 minimum wage discussions.
The statement said that in the first meeting, NCMW received input from the representatives of employers and employees, and held another meeting to negotiate the minimum wage increase for workers.
“The next online meetings will be held at 9am on September 14, 21 and 28 at the Ministry of Labour and Vocational Training at the request of and according to the situation of NCMW members,” the statement said.
Parties from trade unions on September 6 agreed to set $22.20, or an increase of 11.6 per cent, for the 2022 minimum wage negotiations.
However, the representative for employers claimed the amount would be impossible to meet and this proposed raise in the current environment would be detrimental to the economy, said Garment Manufacturers Association in Cambodia deputy secretary-general Kang Monica.
In 2021, the government raised the minimum wage for workers in the textile, garment and footwear sectors from $190 to $ 192 a month. The government said it approved the $2 increase to assist workers who had been suffering from the Covid-19 crisis.
