Controversial shoe manufacturing giant Kingmaker Footwear will begin production next month at a newly built factory inside the Bavet Special Economic Zone in Svay Rieng province, government and company officials have told the Post.
Taiwan-based Kingmaker, one of the largest footwear manufacturers in the world, began work on the $30-million factory in 2006.
According to Rebekah Maley, Kingmaker's vice-president of human resources, the company is aiming to ship its first delivery in January 2007 and anticipates an output of 800,000 pairs in its first year of operation. Production will ramp up to three million pairs and 5,000 employees in the next four years, and may eventually see as many as 10,000 employees, Maley said.
"In response to the EU anti-dumping duties, we decided to expand into Cambodia," said Maley.
Thousands of jobs have been slashed in the shoe industry in China and Vietnam as European Union (EU) anti-dumping measures have trod on the bottom lines of shoemakers. The EU put safeguards in place this year to keep cheap Chinese and Vietnamese textiles from flooding European markets to eliminate competition and disposal of surpluses.
"We see an opportunity here," Maley said. "We're quite well known for our high-quality children's shoes. Now our goal is to be equally well known for our sense of social responsibility."
According to Maley, Kingmaker intends eventually to fill 10 percent of its Cambodian workforce with persons with disabilities, specifically women confined to wheel chairs.
"We've a significant opportunity to help disabled people and work towards positive integration with society [in Cambodia]," Maley said. "We've been careful to make disabled accessible."
Kingmaker has already sponsored a team in the Cambodian National Volleyball League Disabled (CNVLD) called the Prey Veng Kingmaker Cobras, according to Christopher Minko, CNVLD executive director.
According to Minko, Kingmaker will partner with the CNVLD to provide assistance in establishing disability sports programs including volleyball matches and wheelchair racing facilities.
Kingmaker was the subject of heated controversy in China in June 2005 when labor watchdog China Labor Watch released a scathing report about the company's Zuhai factory in Guangdong, China, citing among other rights violations, exposure to toxic chemicals, no paid holidays or maternity leave and an 81-hour work week.
"A recent China Labor Watch investigation revealed appalling conditions at the Kingmaker Zuhai factory - the company employs some 7,000 workers, most of whom are internal migrants, who are treated little better than slaves," wrote Neil Kearney, general-secretary of the International Textile, Garment and Leather Worker's Federation, at the time.
"It was part correct and part exaggeration, but we got caught," said Maley of the expose. "We asked ourselves if we had to make changes - and we did. It was a long time ago and we've taken a lot of steps towards improvement since. We'd like to think we've come a long way."
Taiwan-based Kingmaker, one of the largest footwear manufacturers in the world, began work on the $30-million factory in 2006.
According to Rebekah Maley, Kingmaker's vice-president of human resources, the company is aiming to ship its first delivery in January 2007 and anticipates an output of 800,000 pairs in its first year of operation. Production will ramp up to three million pairs and 5,000 employees in the next four years, and may eventually see as many as 10,000 employees, Maley said.
"In response to the EU anti-dumping duties, we decided to expand into Cambodia," said Maley.
Thousands of jobs have been slashed in the shoe industry in China and Vietnam as European Union (EU) anti-dumping measures have trod on the bottom lines of shoemakers. The EU put safeguards in place this year to keep cheap Chinese and Vietnamese textiles from flooding European markets to eliminate competition and disposal of surpluses.
"We see an opportunity here," Maley said. "We're quite well known for our high-quality children's shoes. Now our goal is to be equally well known for our sense of social responsibility."
According to Maley, Kingmaker intends eventually to fill 10 percent of its Cambodian workforce with persons with disabilities, specifically women confined to wheel chairs.
"We've a significant opportunity to help disabled people and work towards positive integration with society [in Cambodia]," Maley said. "We've been careful to make disabled accessible."
Kingmaker has already sponsored a team in the Cambodian National Volleyball League Disabled (CNVLD) called the Prey Veng Kingmaker Cobras, according to Christopher Minko, CNVLD executive director.
According to Minko, Kingmaker will partner with the CNVLD to provide assistance in establishing disability sports programs including volleyball matches and wheelchair racing facilities.
Kingmaker was the subject of heated controversy in China in June 2005 when labor watchdog China Labor Watch released a scathing report about the company's Zuhai factory in Guangdong, China, citing among other rights violations, exposure to toxic chemicals, no paid holidays or maternity leave and an 81-hour work week.
"A recent China Labor Watch investigation revealed appalling conditions at the Kingmaker Zuhai factory - the company employs some 7,000 workers, most of whom are internal migrants, who are treated little better than slaves," wrote Neil Kearney, general-secretary of the International Textile, Garment and Leather Worker's Federation, at the time.
"It was part correct and part exaggeration, but we got caught," said Maley of the expose. "We asked ourselves if we had to make changes - and we did. It was a long time ago and we've taken a lot of steps towards improvement since. We'd like to think we've come a long way."
3 comments:
The oppositions will not be too excited about this development.
SiS
Does the opposition want Cambodian women to have decent jobs, or for them to continue working as bargirls and prostitutes to white men?
I am glad that Kingmaker is taking steps to free itself from violations. It's a good first step. Kingmaker does not have to tear down its Cambodian employees so that they can make a dollar more. They can work together side by side with the Cambodian and both will benefit.
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