The Ministry of Labor and Vocational Training, in cooperation with the Cambodian embassy in Egypt, rescued and is in the process of repatriating 78 people who were allegedly forced to work long hours and with little food in Saudi Arabia.
One of the victims, who posted a video on a Facebook account belonging to Ry Single on April 18, shared that their employment contract with Cambodian firm Fatina Manpower Co Ltd required them to do cleaning work as a group for eight hours in the Middle East country. They would be paid a monthly salary of 1,500 riyal ($400).
But, in reality they worked for more than 16 hours a day and did not get enough food, which was contrary to what the company promised in the contract.
“In a week, we only received three meals. Some people only got bread while others didn’t receive any food for five days,” the victim said, adding that they had no energy left to work. So, they appealed to Prime Minister Hun Manet and the authorities to help them return to Cambodia.
“We asked the ministries and organizations to facilitate our return to Cambodia from April 1 till April 18 but we did not get any results,” she said.
Instead, they were allegedly taken into “custody” by their Saudi Arabian employer and threatened with starvation if they failed to return to work.
Initial attempts by a CamboJA reporter to contact Fatina Manpower via Facebook and the phone were futile. They later responded that official information will be given by the labor ministry and to wait for that.
According to labor ministry spokesperson Kata Orn, joint efforts were made with the Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation Ministry and the Cambodian embassy in Egypt (which covers Saudi Arabia) to locate the workers and arrange flights for them to come home.
The first batch consisting 29 people flew on April 19, followed by 27 people on April 20 and 22 people on April 21, he told CamboJA.
He declined to comment on why no attempt was made by the government to reach the workers following their 18-day plea on April 1, only acting on the call for help after the Facebook video.
Orn said Fatina Manpower is registered and recognized by the Cambodian labor ministry and has been sending Cambodians to work in foreign countries in the past with “no problems before”.
“The ministry is investigating the case [involving] the company which sent workers to Saudi Arabia to ascertain that the transfer was in accordance with legal procedures and ensured proper working conditions, labor rights and workers’ safety,” he said, adding that the ministry needs to get the facts first before any action is taken.
In the meantime, the workers would be offered employment opportunities via the National Employment Agency when they return.
Am Sam Ath, operations director of rights group Licadho, told CamboJA that the government must review the protection and security of migrant workers, regardless of their legal status.
This is the first time that Cambodian workers have been involved in an employment issue in Saudi Arabia, he said, although such incidents have been reported in China, Malaysia and other countries where Cambodians were subjected to bad employment contracts or were trafficked.
“The important thing is to review the situation. Firstly, the labor ministry should look at companies which possess licenses to bring workers abroad so as to ensure workers’ safety and proper health checks in the workplace. Other countries also have migrant workers, but there is protection at work with [site] inspections and visits.
“Secondly, workers who want to migrate must have a clear understanding of the culture, tradition and customs of the foreign country before migrating there. Thirdly, we need to find illegal companies that bring workers abroad,” he said.
