“None of the demands from workers were accepted or settled in the Wednesday meeting at the Ministry of Labour and Vocational Training, but the ministry… requested both parties meet again next week on June 30 at 9am,” said the union representative Sithar Chhim on last Friday.

Ms Chhim’s union – “Labour Rights Supported Union of Khmer Employees of NagaWorld” – is asking NagaWorld’s management to reverse its lay-off decision, and to rehire some workers already let go.

The casino resort promoter, NagaCorp Ltd, confirmed in a June 7 filing some lay-offs at the complex, as well as pay cuts, the latter effective since March. 

The firm said at the time that these were “proactive measures” to manage the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic, as the casino resort has been shuttered since early March.

Subsequently a general increase in Covid-19 cases in Phnom Penh brought about forms of lockdown.

Editing by Rachel Hu

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NagaCorp said these were “proactive measures” to manage the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic, as the casino resort has been closed since early March.

“We launched a rationalization program to improve cost efficiency, which will impact some of our employees,” stated the Hong Kong listed company.

“We believe that these changes and other changes we have made as part of our Covid-19 strategy will help with the quick return to business normality and help deliver continued financial stability over the long term,” it added.

In Monday’s filing, the company said it would provide affected employees “with enhanced termination compensation over and above payments required by the applicable Cambodian laws,” in order to “assist their transition into other career or business interests.”

Talks of “potential lay-offs” at NagaWorld had been confirmed in April. At the time, a Cambodian labour group representative revealed that more than 1,300 jobs could be at risk.

NagaCorp also said it was implementing other measures to minimize cash expenditure. These include: reducing payroll expenses by limiting staff on site, and reducing employee pay since March 2021; scaling back hotel and food and beverage operations; and closing some of the facilities to reduce spending on utilities.

Editing by Rachel Hu

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In an April 19 filing, NagaCorp had proposed a final dividend of US $0.0188 per share, which it said would represent a payout ratio of “100%, based on the net profit generated for the second half of 2020.”

The operator of the NagaWorld complex had said in early March that its full-year 2020 profit had been just above US $102.3 million.

It said the result had been supported by a “satisfactory” recovery in the second half of the year, amid Covid-19 related disruption.

Such profit was down 80.4% compared with nearly US$521.3 million in 2019.

All casinos in Cambodia were ordered to close temporarily from April 1 in 2020, as part of measures to prevent the further spread of the pandemic. NagaWorld had reopened in July last year.

By early March this year, operations at NagaWorld had again been halted, after 11 staff tested positive for Covid-19. There has been no update so far from the company regarding a restart of casino business.

Editing by Rachel Hu

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According to the report from Thomson Reuters Foundation, employees who are considered redundant will lose tens of thousands of dollars in once-anticipated severance packages. That is because the amounts were added up using lower salaries earned in 2020, added the report.

The casino also used government guidance for employers released during the pandemic, the union told Thomson Reuters.

“Workers risked their safety to make profits for NagaWorld during the pandemic, and then when they need help, they are abandoned,” said the union leader, Chhim Sithar.

“We are asking for support and they have responded with the idea of mass layoffs. It’s extremely disappointing.”

Chhim Sithar claimed that NagaWorld’s move violates labor law standards and employer action on redundant employees must consider seniority.

NagaWorld was open for most of 2020. It was shuttered between April and July and had a recent closure, too. The pandemic led to NagaWorld profits lowering to $102 million in 2020, compared to $521 million in 2019, says Thomson Reuters.

NagaWorld put workers out to pasture

When asked for comment on the issue, Sophal Ear, an associate professor of Diplomacy & World Affairs at California’s Occidental College indicates that the union has a point.

“Despite closing April to July last year, the casino still made $102 million in profits,” Ear said. “The casino has made billions in profits over the years. Employees are the company’s most precious resources.”

“Putting them out to pasture like this when the firm has been operating all of 2021 up until recently seems draconian. Not fulfilling regulatory requirements on severance pay isn’t just disappointing, it’s illegal.”

Authorities are in cahoots with the casino because they are as much owners of the business as the CEO is — so they see expenses as coming out of their pockets, too,” Ear alleged.

“They don’t want to see their own share of profits suffer,” Ear further claimed. “It’s the classic abuse of public office for private gain, aka corruption.”

Editing by Rachel Hu

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Separately, a Cambodian labour group representative said that more than 1,300 jobs were at risk. The figure had been mentioned last week in a report by Cambodia media outlet VOD.

NagaWorld suspended operations during the first quarter 2021, after some workers tested positive for Covid-19. At the time this story went online, the property’s promoter had not announced any return to business.

Up to February 20, i.e., prior to suspension, Hong Kong-listed NagaCorp said it had “continued to record recovery” of gaming volumes during the first quarter.

A nighttime curfew in Phnom Penh, first introduced on April 1 as a countermeasure against the further spread of the pandemic, has been extended to April 28.

Tourist resorts across Cambodia are also to remain shut down until that date, according to the latest announcement from Cambodian authorities.

Sithar Chhim, the leader of a grouping called “Labor Rights Supported Union of Khmer Employees of NagaWorld”, revealed that her group had received information earlier this month that the casino operator has planned to lay off about 1,329 employees during April.

Editing by Rachel Hu

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