NG YAP HWA - 12 AUG, 2021
Since the outbreak of the coronavirus, the pandemic has had a devastating effect on employment security of Cambodian workers. Garment factories temporarily closed several times due to lack of raw material from China or community transmission.
Many garment workers either lost their jobs or received a small amount of subsidy from the government. But to rub salt into the wound, garment employers regularly used COVID-19 as a pretext to target union members. The pandemic has been weaponised to get rid of trade unions.
The Business and Human Rights Centre conducted nine case studies on union busting in Cambodia, Myanmar, Bangladesh and India in March-July 2020. The result shows that trade unionists were disproportionately targeted by employers for dismissals.
