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Exploitative Brokering Practices in Cambodia

Dissemination Workshop on a Study into Exploitative Labour Brokerage Practices

On 16 March 2007, the Cambodian National COMMIT Taskforce, in cooperation with UNIAP-Cambodia, launched a Study into Exploitative Labour Brokerage Practices in Cambodia. The study is the first pilot study in the region on Project Proposal Concept 8 (PPC8) of the COMMIT Sub-Regional Plan of Action. PPC8 specifically focuses on Addressing Exploitative Brokerage Practices.

The case studies explored in the research revealed:

•          Malpractices and apparent negligence by licensed recruitment agencies

•          Unlicensed companies operating illegally to send Cambodians to work overseas

•          Abuses by employers in receiving countries are common

•          Cambodian migrants face various vulnerabilities at different stages of the migration process

•          Extent of problem of trafficking for labour exploitation remains unknown

 The question and answer session of the workshop was particularly productive. Many high level government officials contributed to the success of the dialogue. Please see attached the summary report of the workshop which includes a transcript of the question and answer session.

This Study into Exploitative Brokering Practices in Cambodia seeks to provide an example and lay the groundwork for further regional action in this area. The Dissemination Workshop was followed-up by a Skills Sharing Workshop on Labour Brokerage Practices held on 21-22 March.

A two-day workshop titled “Skills Sharing Workshop on Labour Recruitment Practices in Cambodia” was held from 21 to 22 March 2007 at the Sunway Hotel in Phnom Penh. The workshop was co-organized by the Ministry of Labour and Vocational Training (MOLVT) and the UN Inter Agency Project on Human Trafficking (UNIAP), together with the International Labour Organization (ILO), the UN Development Fund for Women (UNIFEM) and the International Organization for Migration (IOM). It saw the participation of more than 80 representatives from the MOLVT, Ministry of Women’s Affairs, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of Interior, private recruitment agencies, employers’ association, local non-government organizations (NGOs), and the media.

The workshop was organized to support the Project Proposal Concept Number 8 (PPC8) under the COMMIT SPA which aims to address exploitative brokering practices. The objectives of the workshop were:

1.       To provide a skills sharing forum for officials from the Ministry of Labour and Vocational Training to learn about the procedures of labour recruitment and the policy and legislative framework governing labour recruitment in Cambodia

2.       To raise conceptual understanding of human trafficking, human smuggling and various forms of international migration as well as international conventions relating to migrant workers

3.       To provide a forum for interaction and exchange between recruitment agencies and the Royal Government of Cambodia (RGC) to consider how policy can assist both parties

4.       To create tangible goals and actions that work towards achieving higher standards for the conduct of private recruitment agencies in Cambodia

Available Downloads

Dissemination Workshop Report

Report on Skills Sharing Workshop on Labour Recruitment Practices