GENEVA (ILO News) - The International Labour Organization (ILO) said today that its initial probe of working conditions in Cambodian garment factories found no evidence of child labour, forced labour or sexual harassment but did discover problems in some plants with over-time payments, hours of work and anti-union discrimination.
The "First Synthesis Report on the Working Conditions Situation in Cambodia's Garment Sector" * is the result of a ground-breaking project that has thrust the ILO into a new role as a factory-labour monitor of Cambodia's trade agreement with the United States.
ILO Director-General, Juan Somavia, welcomed the positive approach of all the parties involved in this unique project which he believes offers an example of "the sort of enforceable standards" needed in the global trade sector. "The global economy needs a floor of core labour standards. It could take five years but labour rules are going to be there," he said.
The Project Advisory Committee (PAC) - comprising representatives from the Cambodian government, employers and trade unions also welcomed the report and believed its support of the ILO programme had brought "positive benefits to all of the parties in Cambodia and has led to improved working conditions and greater respect for the rights of workers."
This US-Cambodian trade agreement, signed in January 1999, offers a possible 14 per cent annual increase in Cambodia's export entitlements to the United States - provided Cambodia meets the ILO's core labour standards. Washington is due to make its determination by 1 December of each Agreement period on whether the Cambodian textile and apparel sector is "substantially" complying with these international standards.
Cambodia's garment exports in 2000 were worth 985 million dollars - 70 per cent of total exports - of which U.S. exports were worth 750 million dollars, according to figures supplied by the Cambodian Development Resource Institute (CDRI).
Last year, Cambodia had 220 garment factories employing 200,000 workers and 190 factories are registered with the ILO. These employed some 168,300 workers - the overwhelming majority (approx 148,000) of which were women.
The ILO's report contains an overview of the findings of the first 30 factories investigated (since monitoring began 27 June 2001) that employed some 21,500 workers, of which nearly 19,500 were female.
According to the report, the key initial findings indicated:
• There is no evidence of child labour.
• There is no evidence of forced labour.
• There is no evidence of sexual harassment.
• Incorrect payment of wages occurs with some frequency.
• Over-time work is not taken voluntarily, or not always taken voluntarily, in substantial number of factories.
• Freedom of association, including anti-union discrimination, is a problem in some factories.
• Strikes are not organized in conformity with legally-required procedures.
The report underlined that the monitoring of factories was not an objective in itself, but part of a process aimed at improving working conditions in Cambodia's garment sector as a whole.
The Project Advisory Committee took note of the report's suggestions that more work needs to be done in some areas, including those pertaining to wages and overtime work, and in the implementation of Cambodian labour laws.
"All parties will undertake further efforts toward that objective," PAC declared in a statement. "All members of PAC remain fully committed to the continuation of the ILO monitoring project and pledge their full cooperation to the ILO in this regard."
"At the same time, we hope that our unique effort on labour standards in Cambodia will receive continued and higher levels of support and recognition from the U.S. government. We also express our request that U.S. buyers demonstrate their support for the efforts underway in Cambodia through expanded and long-term commitments to sourcing our garment industry."
* Copies of the report and the PAC statement can be seen on the ILO website: http://www.ilo.org/public/english/dialogue/index.htm under the chapter "Featured sites". For further information, please contact: John Doohan, ILO Department of Communication, Geneva. Tel.: +4122/799-8906.