Cambodian union leader Chhim Sithar has vowed to continue the strike against Cambodia’s largest casino, Nagaworld.
According to Cambodian and Asian news media, Sithar has vowed to “continue the labour action until justice is done.” This was despite the fact that she was just freed from her two-year imprisonment for leading the strike against said casino in 2021. This was quoted by the media as the “longest strike” in the history of Cambodia.
The strike started in December 2021, headed by Sithar to protest against the mass layoffs and alleged union-busting at the casino in the capital, Phnom Penh. She was arrested and charged in January 2022 while leading a demonstration of dismissed employees.
It was noted that NagaWorld had fired 373 employees during the Covid-19 pandemic in 2021 due to financial struggles.
“About our advocacy fighting for union rights at NagaWorld, we will continue holding strike action until we get a solution. That’s the position we have determined since the first strike,” Sithar added.
After Sithar’s arrest in January 2022, Cambodia’s Ministry of Labor and Vocational Training announced in December 2022 that 200 of the former employees have dropped their cases after accepting compensation.
NagaCorp, NagaWorld’s operator, had recent updates in August, in which it issued a profit warning regarding possible losses due to its Vladivostok project.
In the same month, the operator announced its H1 financial report, which saw a year-on-year increase of 12.3%.
