Cambodia’s labour migration governance framework: A comparative analysis with international labour standards for recruitment, work in fishing and forced labour

The Cambodian Government has recognized that labour migration significantly contributes to inclusive and sustainable economic growth and development. As a result, the Government has a taken a number of important steps forward in recent years in developing its labour migration governance framework, including drafting a series of prakas to support the implementation of Sub-Decree 190 on the Management of Sending Cambodian Workers Abroad through Private Recruitment Agencies. Cambodia has also implemented its third Labour Migration Policy and Action Plan (2019–2023), which outlines the Government’s commitment to leveraging the benefits of labour migration for the country’s long-term development.

Nevertheless, addressing the specific vulnerabilities of migrant workers in the fishing and seafood processing sectors requires that further legislative progress is made towards the adoption of international labour standards. Significant gaps remain in providing labour protections for migrant fishers; responding to forced labour as a stand-alone offense against migrant workers; eliminating worker-borne recruitment fees; applying stringent sanctions for violations by recruitment agencies; awarding of responsive remedies for abuses; and other legislative and enforcement concerns.

To date, there has been no legal analysis conducted on the labour migration governance framework for the fishing and seafood processing sectors in Cambodia. This comparative legal analysis seeks to inform Cambodia’s efforts to strengthen the related policies and laws by increasing their alignment with the international labour standards outlined in the Private Employment Agencies Convention, 1997 (No. 181); the Protocol of 2014 to the Forced Labour Convention, 1930; and the Work in Fishing Convention, 2007 (No. 188). Ratification of these international labour standards by Cambodia would help to address the specific vulnerabilities of migrant workers in the fishing and seafood processing sectors through ensuring that adequate legal protections are in place.

This research study has been published under the framework of the ILO Ship to Shore Rights South East Asia programme, in partnership with Cambodia’s Ministry of Labour and Vocational Training.