Survey on Recruitment Practices in the Garment Industry in Cambodia

Abstract

In 2015, the World Bank upgraded Cambodia’s economic status from low-income to lower-middle income country—a result of impressive economic growth at an average of 7.6 percent from 1994- 20151. Garment exports and tourism have driven much of that growth. The garment sector accounts for about $5 billion or 80% of the country’s annual export revenues. The industry employs approximately 700, 000 Cambodians, the majority of whom are women. Despite the importance of the garment industry in the economy, promoting decent work conditions remains challenging. The industry is known for high turnover rate, high recruiting volume, and largely informal recruitment process. Workers have few means to find information about job opportunities. Through The Asia Foundation’s work with garment workers, we found that many workers rely on their friends or family members for information about job opportunities. They normally have to go to a factory to apply for a job without having information about whether the factory is recruiting workers.