PM tells unemployed workers of Cambodian to return to agriculture [-Will it help when crop price drops and land-grabbing happening everywhere?]

PHNOM PENH, March 10 (Xinhua) -- Unemployed factory workers can return to agriculture to guarantee better crops supply for the kingdom, national media on Tuesday quoted Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen as telling a recent meeting.

Closure of factories has led to mass unemployment, but workers can still find their livelihood in the rural areas as Cambodia is a country rooted in agriculture, Chinese-language newspaper the Sinchew Daily quoted him as saying.

"Unemployment hasn't caused very big crisis for our country," because people still have large fields to plant crops and fruit trees, he said.

If more people return to villages for plantation, Cambodia can have better crops supply, he said.

Meanwhile, Cambodia is also expecting EU, U.S., China, Japan and South Korea to revitalize their economies as soon as possible, thus becoming capable to help the kingdom develop itself, he added.

According to local reports, at least 80 garment factories have been closed in Cambodia since the global financial crisis occurred at the end of last year.

Some 19,000 people have lost their jobs in the garment sector so far and more are expected later this year, the International Labor Organization (ILO) said in February.

Garment is the kingdom's foremost pillar industry. Meanwhile, Cambodia is also a major rice exporter in the region beside the Mekong River.

Thousands of garment factory jobs under threat: owners, unions

Tuesday, 18 November 2008
Written by Sam Rith
The Phnom Penh Post

With the global economic crisis taking its toll on Cambodian garment exports, the sector may face factory closures and mass layoffs

THOUSANDS of garment workers in Cambodia could be laid off in coming months if global markets, particularly the United States, continue to fall into deepening economic crisis, labour leaders and garment industry officials said Monday.

Chuon Momthol, president of the Cambodian Union Federation (CUF), a government-aligned union, said as many as 35 garment factories could be shuttered in November or December if dire international market conditions to not improve.

"So far, at least 20,000 workers have been laid off," he said, adding that the 35 factories facing closure employ between 1,000 and 5,000 workers each.

Van Sou Ieng, chairman of the Garment Manufacturers Association of Cambodia, said 30 factories have been closed this year.

"They closed because there were no purchase orders," he said.

"Our factories this year have only been operating at about 70 percent capacity."

He added that there was no indication that the situation for garment makers would improve in the near-term.

"Next year, the garment sector will face greater shortfalls in orders, particularly from buyers in the United States," he said.

Cambodia's nearly 500 garment factories employ about 350,000 workers nationwide, with most coming from the country's rural provinces, the CUF's Chuon Momthol said, adding that September saw the start of a critical downturn in the garment sector.

But Chea Mony, president of the Free Trade Union of Workers, said the garment sector would be unaffected by the economic slump.

"Factory closures were caused by the pullout of some investors who had been in Cambodia for 10 or 20 years but who have moved on to avoid legal conflicts over labour issues with the workers," he said.