Employer in Cambodia

Employer obligations in Cambodia apply across industry, mining, commerce, crafts, agriculture, services and land or water transport. The Labour Law generally does not cover judges, permanent civil servants, police, the army, military police, certain air and maritime regimes or domestic work unless another rule expressly brings the work within its scope. The Ministry of Labour and Vocational Training (MLVT), including its provincial and municipal offices, handles labour administration, declarations, inspections and conciliation. The National Social Security Fund (NSSF) handles registration, contributions and social-security benefits. Before operations begin, an establishment normally files an opening declaration with the MLVT. An establishment with fewer than eight permanent workers and no machinery may file within 30 days after opening. A closing declaration is due within 30 days after closure. Prakas 110/25 provides an online opening and closing workflow with an online certificate and a Labour Administration and Case Management System (LACMS) account within 30 days. An employer must notify hiring and dismissal within 15 days, or within 30 days for agricultural work. Casual workers who work for fewer than 30 continuous days or intermittently for no more than three months in a 12-month period are exempt from some establishment requirements. An establishment with at least eight workers must adopt internal regulations within three months after opening, after consultation with the worker representative. These rules cover hiring, pay, benefits, working hours, leave, notice, occupational safety and health, and discipline. Direct recruitment is permitted. Probation may last up to one month for non-specialized work, two months for specialized work and three months for regular work. Employment contracts may be written or verbal, but a fixed-duration contract must be written and state its exact end date. A fixed-duration arrangement can last up to two years including renewals; otherwise it becomes an undetermined-duration contract. Recruitment and employment cannot discriminate on grounds such as race, colour, sex, religion, political opinion, birth, social origin or union membership or activity. Forced labour is prohibited, and the minimum working age is 15, with hazardous work restricted to people aged 18 or older. A foreign worker needs legal entry, a passport, a residence permit, a fitness certificate, a work permit and an employment card. The permit is valid for one year. The employer uses the Foreign Worker Centralized Management System (FWCMS) for quota registration and related declarations, including staff movement and a human-resources development plan. Quota categories include office, specialized and non-specialized workers. Fees and health-check requirements follow the current applicable Prakas. Pay must not fall below the applicable ministerial minimum. From 1 January 2026, the minimum monthly rates in the textile, garment, footwear, travel-goods and bag sectors are USD 208 during probation and USD 210 for regular work. Piece-rate pay must also meet the applicable floor. No general nationwide minimum rate is evidenced for sectors outside those listed industries. Workers must normally receive pay at least twice a month, with no interval longer than 16 days; employees must receive pay at least once a month. The employer must be able to prove payment in a wage dispute and must settle final wages and termination payments promptly after the employment ends. Normal working time is limited to eight hours per day and 48 hours per week, with no more than six working days per week. Workers receive at least 24 consecutive hours of weekly rest. Overtime is reserved for exceptional or urgent situations and is paid at 50 percent above the normal rate. Overtime from 22:00 to 05:00 and work on a weekly rest day are paid at 100 percent above the normal rate. Night work is paid at 130 percent of the daytime wage. Annual leave accrues at 1.5 days per month, with one additional day for every three years of seniority. Family special leave may reach seven days. Maternity leave lasts 90 days, and the Labour Law provides 50 percent wage payment during maternity leave, protection against dismissal and lighter work during the first two months after return. The employer must provide safe working conditions, prevent hazards, give occupational-safety training, supply personal protective equipment and arrange an enterprise infirmary where required. Pre-employment and follow-up medical examinations may be required. Work injuries and occupational diseases must be reported to the NSSF, and injured workers must receive referral and care through the applicable system. An employer may not retaliate against a worker for raising an occupational-safety concern. Labour inspectors may enter without prior notice, inspect documents, order hazard controls and impose fines. Employer-borne NSSF contributions include 2.6 percent for health care, 0.8 percent for occupational risk and a 2 percent employer share for pensions, subject to the applicable reporting and payment workflows. Employers and workers may form professional organisations. An employer association provides a formal channel for collective employer representation, while a workers’ union represents workers; mixed employer-worker unions are not permitted. In a workplace with at least eight workers, an elected shop steward serves as the sole workplace representative. Union membership and lawful union activity may not be used as a basis for discrimination. Dismissal or transfer of a shop steward requires authorization from the Labour Inspector. Worker consultation is also required for internal regulations and mass-layoff processes. An individual labour dispute normally goes first to conciliation before the Labour Inspector. If conciliation fails, the parties may proceed to a Common Court or, where available under the applicable procedure, refer the matter to the Arbitration Council, Cambodia’s quasi-judicial labour-dispute body. A collective dispute goes to the Labour Inspector, whose conciliation process may last up to 15 days. If it fails, the parties may use a collective agreement procedure, reach an agreement or proceed to arbitration. A referral to the Arbitration Council is made within three days and its meeting is held within three days. A lawful strike requires at least seven working days’ notice to the employer and the MLVT, must remain peaceful and does not remove the freedom of non-striking workers. Lawful union or strike activity cannot justify sanctions. An undetermined-duration contract requires written notice of at least seven days when employment lasted less than six months, 15 days from six months to two years, one month for more than two to five years, two months for more than five to ten years and three months after more than ten years. If notice is not given, the employer owes wages and benefits in lieu of notice. Early termination of a fixed-duration contract generally requires a written agreement signed by both parties before the Labour Inspector, unless serious misconduct or force majeure applies. When a fixed-duration contract expires, severance is at least five percent of the wages paid unless a collective rule provides otherwise. For an undetermined-duration contract, seniority payment is 15 days of wages per year, paid in half-year instalments. The remaining seniority payment for one to six months is seven days when the employer terminates compliantly; serious misconduct removes the seniority payment. A mass layoff may result from reduced activity or internal reorganisation. The employer must consult worker representatives in writing and inform the MLVT. The responsible minister may suspend the process for up to 30 days and may repeat the suspension once. Selection starts with the lowest professional ability and then the lowest seniority; seniority increases by one year for marriage and by one year for each dependent child. A worker dismissed in this process has priority for rehire into the same position for two years, and required vacancy notices must be issued. In a merger, sale or succession, existing employment contracts continue. These employer duties concern the organisation’s labour processes; a worker’s individual claim or a disputed statutory interpretation may require separate employment or labour-law advice.