Cambodia's industrial production is mainly based on the textile and clothing sectors, which supply 90% of exports. The textile and clothing sector, in turn, are based mainly on women's work, whose conditions these days are the subject of heavy complaints by trade unions and workers' rights associations. In the eye of the storm are the maneuvers that most companies in the sector implement to avoid paying workers for maternity leave. In fact, much more than men, women are recipients of short-term contracts, a type of contract which gives them the right to maternity reimbursement after one year of service in the same company. In practice, however, under the threat of not being re-employed, many pregnant workers are forced by the company to interrupt their contracts, without taking advantage of maternity leave, and then, in most cases, not be re-employed anyway. There are so many who find themselves faced with the dilemma: either to have a child and start a family, or to keep their job. "We are doing everything" says Ken Chenglang, of the independent national union of the Cambodian textile federation, "to put an end to this state of affairs". "And above all" she adds "for companies to give up using this type of contract, which does not guarantee women's rights, even though they are enshrined in both the Constitution and labor legislation". However, the battle appears difficult, since almost all companies in the sector (95%) are involved in gender discrimination. According to Dave Welsh, director of a Solidarity Centre, the only way to get some results is to prepare a "class-action" addressed to companies, divided by groups and brands, and try this way to get them to change their tune.
http://www.phnompenhpost.com/national/factory-or-family-dilemma
