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4.2 How parents’ working conditions
in the tourism industry affect their children
As in Thailand, the construction industry is prospering as new hotels are built and old ones
renovated. The labour shortage opens up possibilities for migration. Those migrating to
Siem Reap, come from the poorer provinces all over Cambodia 110 . According to the Construction
Union, the parents migrate first, followed by their children. During the time that
the children and their parents are separated, the children stay with relatives. Friends have
often migrated already. 111
There is no legal minimum wage for construction workers. According to the Construction
Union in Cambodia, some employers will pay wages as they see fit. Sometimes workers only
get paid after the work is done. Furthermore, the construction firms do not take responsibility
for workers’ safety, especially if they get injured. Union organization in the construction
industry is difficult due to the prevalence of many small sites, which makes it difficult to organize
many people 112 . Below is an account from a man who, though aged only 26, has been
working in the construction for 10 years. Here he tells his story.
Man, 26 years, (construction worker, Siem Reap) 113
The construction worker builds restaurants and public pagodas and is at work 10
hours a day and sometimes in the evening if there is work to be done. Non-skilled
workers make 3 dollars (20 SEK) a day and skilled workers make 5 dollars (25
SEK). Child workers receive less. He says that sometimes it takes only two weeks
to get paid, sometimes longer and sometimes he is not paid at all. The wage is not
enough – the family needs to borrow money to survive.
A relative of his worked in the industry in Siem Reap, which lead to him
moving there. After his child was born, his wife started working in construction
too. They live far away from the construction site in a small wooden house with a
little bit of land.
Living conditions can also be grim for the construction workers. Another interview with a
male construction worker revealed that his family lived in a small house, with a low, leaking
roof. The house is very hot as it absorbs the heat as there is no material in between the walls.
His family shares three toilets with 100 people 114 .
In the hotel industry, the working conditions are often better at internationally owned
hotels. The staff receive higher wages, have medical insurance and maternity leave (90 days
off, 50 per cent pay) and are union members to a larger extent. The average wage depends
on position and whether the person is skilled or unskilled. Locally owned hotels have in the
past not always followed the labour law and in some cases workers at these cannot be absent
from work for even as little as three days without having their salary reduced. 115
No child’s play | 21