Cambodian Casino eliminates 1,300 jobs, reduces employee severance pay
Date posted: May 3, 2021, 08:28 h.
Last updated: May 3, 2021, 08:28 h.
NagaWorld in Cambodia is eliminating about 1,300 jobs and reduction of severance pay. The move was criticized by the workers' union.
The Thomson Reuters Foundation announced recently that the property offering gaming in Phnom Penh exceeded 15 percent of its workforce is to be laid off. But the casino owner blames this move on COVID-19 impact.
Workers deemed laid off will lose tens of thousands of dollars in anticipated severance payments, the report said. This is because amounts have been summed up using lower earnings in 2020, the report adds.
The casino also benefited from government guidance for employers released during the COVID-19 pandemic, the union told Thomson Reuters.
"Workers risked their safety to cash in on NagaWorld during the pandemic, and when they need help, they are abandoned," quoted Chhim Sithar, union leader of Thomson Reuters.
We ask for your support, and they responded with the idea of mass layoffs. This is very disappointing. "
Sithar argued that the NagaWorld move violated labor law standards. The employer's actions regarding the dismissed workers must take account of seniority, adds Sithar.
NagaWorld does not answer
NagaWorld is the only casino in the capital city of Phnom Penh. NagaWorld officials declined to comment on the union leader's claims, the report said.
NagaWorld was open to most of 2020. It closed from April to July. It has recently closed.
Foreign tourists can gamble in Cambodia. Cambodian residents are not allowed to gamble in the casino.
The pandemic saw NagaWorld's profits drop to $ 102 million last year, down from $ 521 million in 2019, said Thomson Reuters.
Casino Send employees to the pasture
Sophal Ear, associate professor of diplomacy and world affairs in California, when asked to comment on the Occidental College employment dispute, said Casino.org “The relationship is right.
Despite being closed from April to July 2020, the casino continued to earn 102 million in profits, Ear said. “The casino has grossed billions of dollars over the years. Employees are the company's most valuable resources.
“Releasing them to pastures like this, with the company doing all of 2021 until recently, seems draconian. Not only is failure to meet severance pay regulatory requirements disappointing, it is illegal. "
He also noted that officials chose not to comment in response to employee concerns.
"So that the authorities wouldn't say anything when someone asked who's in charge," Ear said. "Certainly not the authorities."
Ear also pointed out that basic decency would get the billionaire who owns the casino to use $ 05 million of their money, which is 1 percent of $ 1 billion, "to at least provide his employees with what the law requires," Ear said.
The ear claims the owner has $ 4.5 billion.
The authorities are allies with the casino because they own the company as much as the CEO - so they think the expenses are out of pocket too, ”Ear says.
"They don't want their share of the profits to suffer," Ear continued. "This is the classic abuse of public office for private gain, that is corruption."
It also notes that the first to go hungry are workers in difficult times.
”The blockade is a good example. First it was a two-week stay at home, don't go out. Then it was "oh, let's just extend it for another week." Normal Cambodians don't have pantries and large refrigerators like the elite in Phnom Penh, but they buy food every day, Ear noted.
