Recognising that economies in Asia are developing very fast, there is a considerably widening gap in terms of income as indicated by the Gini coefficients per country. For example, in most of the countries including Laos and Vietnam the income gap has been widening while the economy grows. Aside from increasing informalisation of jobs, there are also other indicators indicating that the labor situation has not improved in the last decade. It is true that poverty in Asia is decreasing but relative poverty has been increasing which means that the income gap in society has become more serious. There are more self-employed and own account workers and more women than men in these categories. The situation of women is relatively worse than men in the informal economy because they have no voice and visibility particularly in decision making processes. Aside from increasing precarious work, the marginalised informal workers also suffer from privatisation of public goods. Increasing occupational risks comprise another difficulty faced by informal workers.
The Asian Roundtable on Social Protection (AROSP) meeting for Southeast Asian partners happened in Phnom Penh, Cambodia on 27-28 June 2014. It intends to consolidate the AROSP partners’ network in Southeast Asia towards the strengthening of the social protection advocacy in the region. It was attended by 30 participants (14 women and 16 men) representing workers’ organisations in different Southeast Asian countries including Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Thailand, and Vietnam.
The content of this book is upon of the discussion in the Fourth Asian Roundtable on Social Security meeting which was co-organised by AMRC and the University of Philippines in Manila. The book includes country reports on social protection in Asia, overview on the road to social protection in Asia, outcome of the conference, among others. The book serves to provide comprehensive information on social protection for all from the labour perspective in Asia.
A group of labour leaders and activists from seven Asian countries gathered to share experiences regarding “Strengthening Freedom of Association in Asia: Strategies and Mechanisms”, co-hosted by Asia Monitor Resource Centre (AMRC) and the Center for Trade Union and Human Rights (CTUHR). Aggressive union-busting and violent repression of organizing have been among the chief problems faced by Asian labour organizations when they organize workers in defense of their labour rights – with gross impunity even in cases where such rights are clearly constitutiona
The worldwide financial crisis has caused huge damage to Cambodia’s tourism, garment manufacturing and construction sectors. Those sectors comprise three of the Southeast Asian kingdom’s four economic pillars (besides agriculture) and the bulk of its economic growth over the past decade. Tens of thousands of people have lost their jobs in the past 16 months or are earning less than before.
Consider the following scenarios - Li Guihong (not her real name) worked in a shoe factory in southern China. Her job was to apply glue to the shoes. However, the glue she used was a benzene-based solvent, which is very toxic. Ventilation in the factory was very poor and workers were directly exposed to the toxic fumes. Management had provided the workers with cotton face masks, and the workers in the factory believed that these could protect them. However, Li is now in a hospital in Guangzhou, suffering from partial paralysis. She is unable to walk on her own and is in a wheel chair.
This book is more than a review of labour law, it is the only comprehensive review available of labour law in the Asia Pacific region. It investigates the impact of labour law on workers in 30 countries. It analyses trade union and labour activists’ responses to changes in labour law, and examines what labour law means for workers’ daily lives. Each chapter representing a country can be downloaded country wise for download below.
The International Labour Organisation (ILO) moved into Cambodia within months of the signing of the Paris Peace Agreement. Since then, the ILO has been engaged in a range of activities like employment generation programmes, technical training programmes, and monitoring garment factories. This paper examines the overall activities of the ILO in Cambodia with special focus on its role in the garment industry, which is the largest non-agricultural industrial sector in Cambodia.
Asia Monitor Resource Centre (AMRC) and the Cambodia Labour Organisation (CLO) organised a three day occupational safety and health (OSH) training programme in Phnom Penh, Cambodia from 2 to 4 October. 18 workers and trade union representatives, and 10 NGO workers attended the event. The workers who took part were mainly from garment and shoe factories in Cambodia.
Many women and children have been trafficked from rural areas in Cambodia and neighbouring countries to Cambodian cities, especially Phnom Penh, to be prostitutes.