Thousands of workers gathered outside of NagaWorld casino to call for wage increases and the reinstatement of union leader Chhim Sithar.

NagaWorld has reinstated suspended union president Chhim Sithar after a two-day strike that gathered thousands of workers in front of the central Phnom Penh casino. NagaWorld representatives also told the assembled workers this evening that the company would be raising workers’ salaries after further negotiation. Workers are expected to return to work tomorrow.

The agreement came after union officials including Chhim Sithar, who was indefinitely suspended with pay in September 2019 while campaigning for better wages and working conditions, met this afternoon with NagaWorld representatives and senior officials from the Ministry of Labour and Vocational Training to negotiate a settlement.

Hundreds of NagaWorld staff including housekeeping and food and beverage workers staged a mass walkout this morning to join the second day of a peaceful strike attended by thousands of workers demanding a living wage, better working conditions and the reinstatement of their union leader.

The Phnom Penh Municipal Court issued an injunction on Wednesday declaring the strike illegal and calling on participants to return to work, despite workers being guaranteed the right to strike under Cambodian law as well under International Labour Organization conventions.