Cambodia Minimum Wage Talks Stall as Labor and Employer Gaps Widen

Phnom Penh: The National Minimum Wage Council held its third meeting on September 18, 2026, to continue discussions on setting the minimum wage for workers in the textile, garment, footwear, travel goods, and bags manufacturing sectors for 2027. The meeting was presided over by H.E. Heng Sour, Minister of Labour and Vocational Training and President of the National Minimum Wage Council. To date, a total of eight meetings have been held to negotiate and set the minimum wage, including three tripartite meetings, one bipartite meeting between worker and employer representatives, three internal meetings of worker representatives, and one internal meeting of employer representatives. During the session, representatives from the worker and employer sides presented their respective reasons and internal positions to each other in a professional and mature manner. Concurrently, government representatives continued to facilitate and provide further explanations on social and economic criteria to the involved parties. As a result, the majority of worker representatives maintained their proposal for an increase of $15.3 US dollars, bringing the total to $225.3 US dollars. Some proposed an increase of $40.6 US dollars, totaling $250.6 US dollars. Meanwhile, employer representatives proposed to keep the minimum wage at $210 US dollars. The council agreed to continue tripartite discussions on the morning of Monday, September 28, 2026, as per the schedule agreed upon in the notification dated September 1, 2026.