For the past three years, inspiring strikes have been taking place at NagaWorld Casino in Phnom Penh. Unionized workers, especially female workers, have successfully opposed the Casino management as well as the authoritarian state of Cambodia.
Cambodia: Kingdom of labor and social struggles
Since the end of World War II, Cambodia has faced numerous challenges: the Indochina wars and the independence movements of the 1940s and 50s (Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos); the civil war between “communist”-inspired guerrillas and General Lon Nol’s forces in the 1970s (supported by the United States, particularly Henry Kissinger) and the nationalist and genocidal regime of the Khmer Rouge from 1975 to 79. Then, another war tore the country into factions, ending with an agreement in 1998.
A period of extreme exploitation
Philippe Richer, historian and former diplomat, has identified what he calls the “seven plagues of the Kingdom” characterizing recent Cambodia:
- landmines (dating back to the Indochina wars and the Khmer Rouge era), with the primary victims being rural children;
- the confiscation of peasant land for private and wealthy entrepreneurs;
- the sale of “public assets” such as the headquarters of the military police, college and university grounds, and communal or state properties for private interests;
- wild deforestation in favor of Asian capitalist profits (e.g., Chennar Plywood, Mien Ly Heng);
- the exploitation of the working class, with flagship industries being textiles and tourism/hospitality;
- a society burdened with rampant social issues, such as human trafficking, drug trafficking, arranged marriages driven by poverty levels of wealth;
- and the corruption of officials and the ruling Cambodian People’s Party since 1998.
Corruption is used to secure the loyalty of people in positions of power, such as high-ranking officials. Despite the appearance of a liberal democracy, Cambodia’s political system is usurped to serve the interests of Hun Sen’s family and the capitalists it defends.
In 2023, the traditional strongman of the regime, Hun Sen, handed over his position as head of state to his eldest son, Hun Manet, following likely rigged elections. Furthermore, the government is not hesitant to exile its political opponents, such as liberal Sam Rainsy, or assassinate union leaders like Chea Vichea, president of the Free Trade Union of the Kingdom of Cambodia, killed on January 22, 2004.
Between 2000 and 2023, estimates report that around 171,000 households were expropriated or involved in land disputes. Many farmers are currently fighting for the preservation of their lands.
Fierce exploitation, fierce struggles
The textile industry — with companies like H&M — and the tourism industry — with luxury hospitality companies like Sofitel or NagaWorld Casino — are grounds of intense class struggles. Women are particularly affected by capitalist exploitation. In addition to the risk of dismissal if they become pregnant, their wages and working conditions are less than enviable.
In 2013 and 2014, tens of thousands of textile workers went on strike for approximately two weeks, demanding a decent minimum wage ($160/month). The police brutally used their repressive powers to the fullest, resulting in injuries and three deaths. The military also intervened. Nonetheless, the government was forced to increase the minimum wage to $100/month.
It’s worth noting that the minimum wage of $200/month implemented since 2022 does not meet people’s needs. Economic struggles are therefore central to the Cambodian labor and union movement.
A first victorious strike at NagaWorld Casino in 2020!
Casinos play a significant role in Cambodia’s tourism industry. NagaWorld (with a net profit of $107.3 million in 2023) is the key capitalist player in the casino sector in Cambodia, with the largest one located in the capital, Phnom Penh. The company aims to consolidate a monopoly in this lucrative industry.
In an interview, Chhim Sithar, president of the Labor Rights Supported Union of Khmer Employees of NagaWorld (LRSU), summarized the union’s fight at the casino in 2019 and 2020:
“In 2019, half the workers of the casino industry joined the union. We launched another campaign for a liveable minimum wage after the company made significant profits in 2019. This campaign led to a strike in early 2020. After winning the second strike in 2020, the pandemic happened.”
The key to the showdown was twofold: the massive participation of workers in democratic assemblies and the organizational leadership of elected union representatives. The leaders had to play an active role with the strikers, constantly contacting them to get them involved in assemblies and urging them to take positions in debates. We’re talking about thousands of people at the assemblies.
Text messages and social media have been key tools for communication among members for organizing actions. It was the massive participation of union members that allowed the mobilization of 4,000 unionized members and over a thousand non-unionized employees on January 9, 2020!
The balance of power on the streets helped overcome the court injunction declaring the strike illegal. It ultimately forced the government to change its stance and intervene in the conflict by offering a direct proposal to the union: a 30% increase and an additional $200 US health allowance!
This is living proof that when workers organize in a union and fight determinedly against a wealthy company, victories can be achieved. However, the 2022 strike was met with significant anti-union repression. It’s the counter offensive.
The strike since 2021: facing employer and police repression
In April 2021, 1,300 employees were laid off during the COVID-19 pandemic, with further layoffs planned. In December, the LRSU union initiated its first days of strike, demanding the reinstatement of dismissed comrades and the implementation of sanitary measures adapted to the realities of on-site work. The Casino management refused.
In the meantime, the government used COVID-19 laws to try to end union gatherings and the strike. However, the strikers stood their ground.
In January 2022, repression escalated: 11 unionists, including the president of the LRSU union, Chhim Sithar, were arrested. On the picket lines, people were arrested, loaded onto a bus, and then released outside the city. In March 2022, the unionists were released from prison after 74 days.
Repression didn’t end there. In 2023, Chhim Sithar, along with eight other unionists, were sentenced to prison for “incitement to disturb public order.”
The labor dispute with the casino continues to this day, but union actions are reduced to demonstrations demanding the release of their comrades and occasional strikes.
The capitalist state is willing to do anything to discourage us and ensure a social order favorable to bosses like those at NagaWorld. This involves union-busting measures, intimidation, and imprisonments. The law is not on the side of workers.
Conflicts like this one are exhausting but important. The good news here is that as long as there are people to continue the fight, there is the possibility of rebuilding mobilization and reclaiming the balance of power.
Assemblies and union structures can once again be democratic and militant spaces. This is where those affected can come together to agree on common struggles and actions.
Together, let’s fight! Together, we will overcome!
In this period of strikes across the world, it’s important to identify our adversaries (including capitalists and their ministers) as well as the government’s anti-union actions. The opposing camp is well-prepared and armed with special laws that will force the return to work of strikers both public and private.. The courts and the police primarily serve those who control the state.
On our side, our strongest weapon is the well-organized balance of power of our numbers. This requires democratic debates within unions and substantial mobilization. Worker and union solidarity must be the cement that unites us, regardless of our professions, trades, or union affiliations.
The strikes at NagaWorld Casino in Cambodia are here to inspire us and warn us about the looming repression over our heads. The 2020 strike demonstrates the working class’s ability to bend a government and a company to its will!
As Ou Tep Phallin, president of the Cambodian Food and Service Worker Federation and strategist during the casino strikes, puts it:
“When they harm someone, it means they are harming people around the world. That’s the definition of a union. (…) It’s not about saying, ‘These are Cambodians, we shouldn’t be involved.’ (…) It means organizing the working class everywhere in the world.”
