According to article 36 of national constitution of the kingdom of Cambodia, which stated that, “Khmer people, both sexes, have the right to form and join union,” we, workers, working for factories all over Cambodia, decided to form a trade union called “ Free Trade Union of Khmer Workers.”
On December 10, 1996, human right's day, 158 workers in Phnom Penh signed a motion to assign and acknowledge three female workers to be their representatives to negotiate with the management of the company they worked for in order to protect right and collective interest of the workers in their factories. That was an interesting event in the history of Khmer workers and was the first step toward the first establishment of free trade union of workers in Cambodia.
On December 15, 1996, there was an official establishment ceremony of Free Trade Union of Khmer Workers and statute was signed with the support and participation of hundreds of workers. This was one of the historical days because free trade union of Khmer workers fully appeared and was tremendously declared the first free trade union in Cambodia.
On February 02, 1997, Free Trade Union of Khmer Workers, had an abnormal congress in Phnom Penh, declared to change its name to Free Trade Union of Workers of the Kingdom of Cambodia, and approved some amendments included in this statute.
On March 07, 1999, Free Trade Union of Workers of the Kingdom of Cambodia had a second congress in Phnom Penh to elect a president to continue its second mandate and approved some amendments included in this statute.
On May 20, 2001, Free Trade Union of Workers of the Kingdom of Cambodia had a third congress in Phnom Penh to elect a president to continue its third mandate and approved some amendments included in this statute.
On May 01, 2003, Free Trade Union of Workers of the Kingdom of Cambodia had a forth congress at PHAKA CHHOUK TEP restaurant in Phnom Penh to elect a trade union president to continue its forth mandate and approved some amendments included in this statute.
On June 27, 2004, Free Trade Union of Workers of the Kingdom of Cambodia had an abnormal congress at New World restaurant in Phnom Penh to elect a new president to continue the forth mandate to replace the position of the former president who was dead.
Since the date of establishment, our free trade union has initiated and arranged the demonstrations and strikes many times at factories in Phnom Penh and provinces in order to claim the law respect and worker's right respect, and to claim to change the working condition and better living for workers. The effort of Khmer workers under our free trade union's leadership was known by the public, not only in Cambodia but also all over the world. As a proof for our free trade union's effort, a lot of national and international news published about the extent and courage of workers' strikes and demonstrations, which happened in the history of Cambodia.
The establishment of free trade union of workers of the kingdom of Cambodia, which has the meaning and objective absolutely different from what it was called “Public Organization” during the period of pre-national election prepared by United Nation in 1993, is in accord with democracy practiced by the kingdom of Cambodia today. Free trade union is not established by guidance or under control of authority. It is established by initiatives and in accord with the actual workers' aspiration. Free trade union does not work for authority's interest or is not a political tool for the authority. It works for the interest of worker only and does not involve in political affairs.
The only goal of free trade union is to protect the worker's right, to raise the standard of living and the value of all workers without discrimination of race, color, ethnic, sex, religions and political tendency.
According to the experience of developed countries in the world, workers have a strong ability to protect their rights and raise the standard of living when they join and form a free trade union in order to negotiate with the bosses, owners, or managers of the enterprises and companies.
It is only through the free trade union that workers can show their collective strength and influence on salary claim, time and working duration set; and other right claim relating to living. If individual worker stays alone and does not dare to form a trade union, most of the times capitalist and boss oppress, mistreat, persecute, look down, and force the worker to work hard for a long duration of times both day and night with the lowest salary and fire them whenever it is according to his/her will. Trade union plays a vital role in protecting worker's rights from being violated by capitalist or boss and push the capitalist and boss to respect the law and letter of standard, and also prevent from being exploited the gain of the enterprise and company by those capitalist or boss for their personal interests without thinking of the sweat, blood, and tear of the worker. If there is no worker, there is no enterprise and company either. Therefore, gain sharing must be fair which means that the worker must have salary that allows them living in an appropriate and valuable condition. Meanwhile, the worker must have other rights relating to their jobs that capitalist and boss need to respect such as the right to enjoy the same position if there is no serious mistake, the right to take leaves in appropriate duration by the law and get the full amount of salary, and the right to get appropriate monetary support when getting sick or accident...etc. If not so, the trade union has the right to invoke the worker to demonstrate and strike and use other non-violence means in accord with the law to force capitalist and boss to respect the law and worker's rights.
Workers are like chopsticks: one worker can be broken by capitalist and boss but if workers form a trade union, they are like a bunch of chopsticks which capitalist and boss cannot break.
Chapter 1
Goal
Article 1: - According to article 36 of national constitution of the kingdom of Cambodia, a majority of Khmer worker unites to establish a trade union called “ Free Trade Union of Workers of the Kingdom of Cambodia ” and its abbreviation is “ FTUWKC .”
• The motto of free trade union of workers of the kingdom of Cambodia is “ Social Justice is the Foundation for Peace .”
Article 2: The goals of free trade union of workers of the kingdom of Cambodia are:
• To promote a broad solidarity among all workers in Cambodia without discrimination of race, color, ethnic, sex, religion, and political tendency.
• To act as worker's representative to protect worker's rights and interests.
• To raise worker's standard of living through salary and other monetary supports claim from capitalist, owner, or enterprise's manager of enterprise and company.
• To claim work duration and work hours set, and other working conditions to comfort standard of living, to protect value, and to ensure the workers' health, safety, and security.
• To claim and follow-up all kinds of law respect especially the labor law at the workplace as well as outside the workplace.
• To promote democracy practice in the factory, enterprise, and company.
• To enhance the ability and general knowledge of workers through vocational education programs and knowledge training programs.
• To raise the solidarity between workers in Cambodia and workers in other countries and communicate with trade unions and other worker's organizations in the world.
• To initiate and conduct all legal activities those help protecting and work for worker's interest.
Chapter 2
Organizational Chart
Article 3: Organizational chart of trade union are:
• Trade union congress
• Chief committee
• Executive office
• Trade union advisor
Part 1
Trade Union Convention
Article 4: - Congress is the top institution of trade union. Congress is initiated by trade union members.
• Congress sets the position and objective of trade union and approves important decisions submitted by chief committee.
• Congress selects the trade union president through a secret-ballot election based on majority voices of the presence member. The election procedure is provided in internal regulation of trade union.
• Congress is able to reform the organizational chart of trade union.
Article 5: There are two kinds of trade union congress: normal congress and abnormal congress.
• Normal congress is held regularly every three years. The date of this congress is set by chief committee.
• Abnormal congress is held depending on the decision of president or majority voices (2/3) of chief committee or majority voices (50% + 1) of all members of trade union. In all cases, chief committee is the only one that is entitled to call for meeting and prepares normal and abnormal congress. Congress is held under the presidency of trade union president.
Part 2
Chief Committee
Article 6: - Chief committee has 11 members, which were elected by hand raising in congress through the request from the elected president.
Article7: - Chief committee controls the performance on objective and policy set by congress.
• Chief committee can initiate to lead trade union and establish technical committee to assist executive office.
• All members of chief committee need to contribute 2 000 Riels (Two thousand Riels) monthly.
Article 8: Chief committee is led by a president. Chief committee selects a vice president and a secretary according to the request of the president. President and vice president of chief committee are the president and vice president of trade union.
Article 9: Chief committee has a meeting at least once a month. In a special case, the president or voices of 1/3 chief committee members are entitled to call for chief committee's meeting.
- Chief committee creates a council of discipline to solve the internal dispute (as provided in part 7, chapter 2)
Part 3
Executive Office
Article 10: Executive office is an executive institution of trade union. Executive office is established from chief committee's composition that has 9 to 15 members to lead, organize, and perform daily tasks of trade union.
Article 11: Executive office implements the objectives and principles of trade union, which was set by congress, under the control of chief committee and is entitled to make decision on all needed matters and tasks except the task to assign, to remove chief committee's roles, or to amend the organizational chart of trade union. With all the above decisions, executive office must be responsible in front of chief committee.
Article 12: Executive office prepares main plans to submit to chief committee for examining before submitting to congress for approval.
Article 13: Executive office has:
• One chairman
• One vice chairman
• One secretary
• One or two vice secretaries
• One financer
• One vice financer
• One accountant
Part 4
Trade Union President
Article 14: - Trade union president is selected by congress through a secret-ballot election and majority voices of presence members with three-year mandate and can run for a president position again after the mandate ends. This selection of trade union president by convention can be done through the election by hand raising and by majority voices of presence members in case there is only one candidate.
- The candidate who was elected continually twice does not have the right to run for president position again.
Article 15: Trade union can have an honor president appointed by chief committee through the request of president. Particularly, former president will become an honor president if it is accepted by himself/herself and by chief committee.
Article 16: With the approval from congress, trade union president is entitled to appoint a vice president, secretary general, vice secretary general, financer, vice financer, accountant, and advisor including some of other chief committee.
Article 17: Vice president of trade union receives the role according to what is set by president. In the absence of president, vice president is appointed to be an acting president.
Part 5
Secretariat and Financer
Article 19: Secretariat is managed by a secretary together with two vice-secretaries. Secretary performs majority of trade union's daily tasks under the control of president and vice president of trade union.
Article 20: Financer manages the budget and inventory of trade union. Financer gets the assistance from a vice financer and an accountant. In case of the absence of financer, vice financer is entitled to be an acting financer.
• Accountant has to report monthly about incomes and expenses of trade union to financer to submit to president, vice president, secretary general, and chief committee for examining.
• Trade union president is entitled to call financer for reporting at all the time as needed. Financer's decision on expenses is provided in internal regulation.
Part 6
Trade Union Advisor
Article 21: Trade union advisor has the role to give advices and direction to trade union. All members who are the advisors of trade union are knowledgeable with skills and extensive experiences. They are selected by chief committee through the request of president.
Part 7
Discipline and Dispute Resolution Council
Article 22: Discipline and dispute resolution council is established by chief committee. The roles and tasks of discipline and dispute resolution council are as follow:
• Prepare trade union's discipline and then ask for approval from executive office to put into practice for all levels of trade union's members.
• Examine and follow-up all activities of all levels of trade union members.
• Evaluate the advantages and disadvantages of activities of trade union members and prepare dossiers to submit to chief committee for examining and deciding to issue appreciation letter, warning letter, or punishment letter.
• Accept accusations from members who have disputes in order to reconcile and solve the problem. In case it is reconciled or solved, it must be reported to executive office.
Article 23: Discipline and dispute resolution council has:
• A chairman selected by executive office from its members if it is not rejected by president of trade union.
• A vice chairman selected by executive office from its members if it is not rejected by president of trade union.
• Other three members selected from trade union by chief committee if it is not rejected by president of trade union.
Article 24: Discipline and dispute resolution council is entitled to prepare a dossier of trade union members, including any members of chief committee that commit wrong from statute, internal regulation, or decisions made by trade union, or do the activities against trade union's interest; to submit to chief committee for examining and deciding.
Article 25: Discipline and dispute resolution council proceeding is set in chief committee's decision.
Chapter 3
Membership
Article 26: Free trade union of workers of the kingdom of Cambodia is a democratic, free, and opened organization to accept Khmer workers from all places who live and work in Cambodia and support the position and direction of free trade union.
Article 27: All members of free trade union of workers of the kingdom of Cambodia must respect regulation stated in statute and internal regulation of trade union, and implement all principles, directions and decisions of trade union.
Article 28: Everyone who is voluntarily to be a member of trade union has to fulfill the below requirements:
• Submit a membership application form
• Contribute 1 000 Riels monthly regularly to trade union
Article 29: Membership of free trade union of workers of the kingdom of Cambodia can be terminated in the below cases:
• Death
• Resignation by written letter submitting to president
• Omitting from chief committee's list for members who do not respect statute or internal regulation or perform activities against trade union's interest. In this case before the final decision of membership termination, chief committee has to call that member to clarify his/her intent and activity, and gives him/her the right to protect himself/herself.
Chapter 4
Right and Duty of Members
Article 30: Without any conditions, every member of trade union must agree to perform thoroughly the below disciplines:
• Work together for trade union's goals as provided in article 2 of statute
• Respect the regulation, discipline, and trade union's decision
• Respect national custom and tradition, and help to improve trade union member in order to serve and protect workers and communities for the purpose of national development.
• Be friendly, help each other, and recognize the value of members by not looking down each other or not being selfish.
• Respect the freedom of religion of members, no discrimination of race, religion, or team or group in the trade union.
• Regularly, contribute 1 000 Riels monthly.
Chapter 5
Strike Procedure
Article 31: - Free trade union of workers of the kingdom of Cambodia assembles and leads workers in all companies, factories, and enterprises all over the countries who are illegally exploited by the boss of those companies, factories, and enterprises; and who are illegally oppressed, mistreated, violated, and exploited benefits especially the violation on labor law by managers. We collectively strike by peaceful and non-violence mean.
• Every declaration of strikes will be proceeded in accord with article 37 and article 38 of national constitution of the kingdom of Cambodia especially with reference to chapter 13 of labor law in order to:
• Protect workers' interest and right in accord with law especially labor law.
• Pressure the boss of factory and enterprise to respect for the law of the kingdom of Cambodia especially labor law and other standard at workplace as well as outside workplace set by competence ministries.
• Promote democracy practice in factory, enterprise and company, or in the kingdom of Cambodia.
Chapter 6
Resources
Article 32: Resources of free trade union of workers of the kingdom of Cambodia come from:
• Contribution of chief committee 2 000 Reils per month.
• 30 percentages of budget from monthly contribution of trade union members on the basis of 1 000 R (One thousand Riels) per person per month.
• Donation from every source
• Donation from national and international organization, governmental and non-governmental.
• Legal activities of trade union.
• Other legal sources.
Chapter 7
Internal Regulation
Article 33: To complement on statute and to state more clearly about trade union proceeding, chief committee is entitled to prepare and put into practice the internal regulation of trade union.
Article 34: This internal regulation can be amended if there is an agreement from 2/3 voices of chief committee.
Chapter 8
Headquarter
Article 35: The headquarter of free trade union of workers of the kingdom of Cambodia is at No 28B, Street 222, Sangkat Beoung Raing, Khan Donpenh, Phnom Penh.
Article 36: The location of headquarter of free trade union of workers the kingdom of Cambodia can be changed according to chief committee's decision.
Chapter 9
Amendment of Statute and Termination of Trade Union
Article 37: - Trade union congress is the only institution that is competent to amend statute or to terminate trade union. Convention meeting for the purpose of statute amendment or trade union termination must be agreed by 3/4 voices of chief committee members and 2/3 voices of congress members.
- In all circumstances and situations, article 5, article 14, and article 37 of statute cannot be amended.
Chapter 10
Transitional Provision
Article 38: In this forth mandate, if the country is in difficult and tension situation such as in the case of no-law-respect and no-respect for democracy, in case of there are oppression and mistreatment on workers, dependent court, and in other serious crisis, abnormal congress on 27 June 2004 provided the right to:
• Chief committee can skip a normal or abnormal congress and continue the mandate of president and chief committee one year each time.
• Cannot change the president selected by congress on 27 June 2004 except resignation and inability.
Chapter 11
Final Provision
Article 39: This statute is in force after the approval from abnormal congress on 27 June 2004.
Phnom Penh, 27 June 2004
President
Chea Muny |
