Former Great Duke staff finally receive severance

Former staff of the Great Duke Hotel have said they have finally got justice after an Arbitration Council decision, aided by an intervention by the Ministry of Labour, awarded their severance pay after five months of protests.

Former staff representative, Toch Kosal, said that they have agreed to receive a total of $320,000, which will be shared among all 152 former staff following the decision the Arbitration Council decision.

He said that as of today, 120 staff had already received their compensation, while the remaining 32 are due to be paid today.

“We have been protesting and negotiating since January, we did not give up. We want to thank the staff for continuing the fight and the Ministry of Labour for their intervention,” he said.

On December 31, 2019, the hotel ceased operations, citing economic reasons. After its closure, the hotel only paid out the previous month’s wages to employees, but failed to offer severance pay in accordance with Labour Law.

Moeun Tola, director for Alliance of Labor and Human Right Central said that he applauds the Ministry of Labour intervention and sends his congratulations to the former staff.

“After struggling for many months, they got their payment and compensation in accordance with the law,” he said.

Source: Khmer Times