Cambodia Sets Modest 1% Minimum Wage Hike as New Policy Takes Effect

Cambodia raises minimum wage. The government of the Southeast Asian country has approved an increase in the minimum wage in the country following negotiations with workers’ representatives. The measure, announced last Wednesday after the latest meeting, puts the hike at just 1%, to $210 per month.

“Despite the global economic uncertainty and the fact that many countries in the region have not raised wages, the Cambodian government has approved the increase, whether considered high or low, to lighten the burden on workers and improve their standard of living,“ explained Labor Minister Heng Sour, in remarks reported by Sourcing Journal.

The increase finally agreed upon is far from the 232 dollars demanded by both unions and civil society, and will finally mean a rise in absolute terms of two dollars. With the bonuses for transportation or seniority, among others, the average salary will end up being between US$227 dollars and $238 a month.

Cambodia exported textiles valued at $5.7 billion in the first half of the year

Among the workers who will benefit are the nearly one million people employed in Cambodia’s fashion industry, making the country the ninth largest textile exporter in the world. According to data from the country’s customs office, collected by the same media outlet, exports from the textile, garment and footwear industry increased by 22% in the first half of 2025, to stand at $7.4 billion.

Sources quoted by the same media, however, have highlighted the lack of “genuine” workers’ representation during the process. In the last meeting with the Executive, in fact, they unanimously advocated not to propose a concrete figure for the minimum wage, citing the current market difficulties and the potential impact of the tariffs imposed by the United States, which in the case of Cambodia stand at 19%.

The 1% increase finally approved, moreover, is well below the 2.5% and 2.3% that inflation in the country is expected to increase in 2025 and 2026, respectively. In early September, in fact, several human rights and workers’ advocacy organizations put the minimum increase that workers should receive in order to survive at 10%.

“This is not a mere proposal, but an urgent necessity based on Cambodia’s current costs,“ the nearly 30 organizations explained in a joint letter. In the text, they put the monthly expenditure workers spend on food and other basic needs at an average of $408.