"Ministry and trade unions discuss law amendments", 26 April 2019

Some 100 local and international representatives of labour unions … met with Ministry of Labour and Vocational Training legal experts to discuss draft amendments to 10 articles of the Law on Trade Unions. The 10 articles center on the rights of workers and unions to hold demonstrations.

…, Minister of Labour … Ith Sam Heng said some international unions and institutions continued to raise concerns about the registration of unions and the certification of top union representatives. They also expressed unease over articles they say are subject to legal restrictions.

“In order to resolve the issue, the ministry has held a series of technical meetings and consultation workshops to assess the implementation of the Trade Union Law, eventually leading to the proposed amendments to the 10 articles…

Ath Thon, president of the Cambodian Labour Confederation, said the latest discussion was more fruitful than previous meetings as the concerns raised by some 70 per cent of the participating unions were addressed. He called on the ministry to address their remaining concerns through further discussion and the acceptance of union input…

Som Aun, president of the National Union Alliance Chamber of Cambodia, said the joint drafting of the amendments offered a chance for involved parties to provide input beneficial to the labour sector in Cambodia.

Aun said unions had initially jointly requested amendments to 14 articles of the Trade Union Law. He said unions would continue to demand the inclusion of the other four articles in the amendments.

Tun Sophorn, national coordinator for the International Labour Organisation (ILO), told … that he welcomed the participation of all relevant parties…