As evening falls outside the Phnom Penh garment factories, the smell of rice noodle soup mixes with motorcycle exhaust. Sitting on plastic stools with iced coffees, local workers talk about the annual minimum wage debate and shake their heads. Everyone wants to earn more, they say, but you cannot push things too far.
Thun Sreypov, who works at a suburban sewing plant, admits she is desperate for a raise, but warns against overplaying their hand. If employers are pushed out of business, everyone loses their jobs and ends up with nothing to eat. Next to her at the machine, Kroeun Sreymom agrees that while a higher base salary sounds great, factories have to be able to afford it. Keeping things balanced is the only way to last.
Local media reports show many workers are quietly worried that if wages jump too high too fast, factories will simply shut down. With jobs hard to come by right now, workers like Tith Sothearith and Mao Sina feel that a secure paycheck you can actually count on is worth much more than an inflated figure on paper—and helps you sleep better at night.
