Just days after the Coalition of Cambodian Apparel Workers’ Democratic Union (C.CAWDU) established an independent union in the River Rich Textile Ltd. factory on 29 October, 2006, management laid off more than 117 workers, most of whom had participated in the union election and were active in the union. The management of the company River Rich Textile Ltd. had engaged in this and other union-busting tactics and violations of Cambodian labour law, prompting persistent efforts by C.CAWDU to negotiate with the company and get the workers reinstated. After months of efforts, workers were reinstated except for 30 union founders, and more than 300 workers went on strike in May to demand the reinstatement of the remaining 30 union founders, even in the face of police attacks and intimidation of the strikers.

After a period of struggle, and constant solidarity efforts from international union supporters, on June 7, 2007, C.CAWDU reached a precedent-setting agreement with River Rich, calling for reinstatement to be offered, on permanent contract, to all 30 terminated union leaders and members who had been fired not long after an independent union was set up in the factor. The agreement also called for the average wage to be paid since the time of their dismissal, the factory to begin converting workers on fixed duration contracts to permanent contracts with the goal of eliminating the use fixed term contracts, all charges to be dropped against C.CAWDU leaders and members, and for C.CAWDU and the employer to build mature industrial relations to increase productivity and efficiency of the factory. The International Textile, Garment and Leather Workers’ Federation (ITGLWF) and the Spanish retailer and principal buyer of River Rich, Inditex, also participated in the negotiations.

25 of the 30 workers accepted reinstatement and have since returned to work as agreed.

The victory is seen as an important one for the Cambodian garment industry and for all unions in Cambodia because it reinforces that a company cannot use fixed-term contracts and firing of workers for the sole purpose of busting independent unions.