About 300 workers at the Lian Hao garment factory in Phnom Penh’s Por Sen Chey district protested for the third day in a row yesterday over the sacking of 14 workers, allegedly for forming a union.

Workers Development Union Federation president Tep Ton said the workers began protesting on Saturday, a day after their firing.

“The 14 workers who were fired were preparing to create a union in the factory to represent and help workers,” he said, adding that the workers had already prepared the leadership infrastructure for the union, such as naming the director and deputy director.

However, Jiadan Feng, son of the factory’s owner, said the workers were fired for failing to perform their duties. He produced evidence such as photos of the workers standing around chatting. He added that the firm had been trying to negotiate, but the workers refused.

One of the protesters, Chan Sok, said they “felt sorry” for the workers. “They always cared for and helped us, but then they lost their jobs. So now we help them by protesting to demand the company give them their jobs back.”

The workers planned to continue their protests today.