Cambodian Garment Workers’ Wages Cover Just 60% of Basic Living Costs, New Survey Finds

Joint trade union study of 422 workers across 28 factories reveals a $204 monthly financial deficit, with 75% of households carrying debt  

CAMBODIA — TUESDAY, 29 SEPTEMBER 2026 — A new survey of 422 garment workers across 28 export-oriented factories in Phnom Penh, Kandal, and Kampong Speu provinces, released by Cambodian trade unions and federations affiliated with Asia Floor Wage Alliance (AFWA), finds that median individual worker earnings ($300 per month) cover just 60% of recorded monthly household expenditure ($504). With women comprising 79% of respondents, the results demonstrate that low factory pay is both a labour rights and a gender justice issue—leaving women workers to shoulder the double burden of paid factory labour and unpaid domestic care while facing a $204 monthly financial deficit. These findings strengthen calls for a woman-centred living wage and empirical, union-led wage negotiations. 

“A decent wage is a wage that guarantees a standard of living and dignity for workers and their families—something current wages do not meet,” said Kong Athit, President of the Coalition of Cambodian Apparel Workers’ Democratic Union (C.CAWDU). “For the first time, unions have presented our own research so that current minimum wage negotiations are grounded in workers’ actual responses rather than relying solely on employer figures. Proposing a figure of $250.66 for the 2027 minimum wage reflects real household costs and gives the National Council for Minimum Wage a fair, evidence-based figure to review.” 

Key Survey Findings: 

  • $204 Monthly Household Deficit: Median individual worker earnings are $300 per month, while median household living expenses are $504, leaving a $204 monthly shortfall. 
  • Reliance on Multiple Earners: 74% of surveyed households depend on two or more income earners (63% with two earners, 11% with three or more) to support a median family size of 4 people. Total median monthly family income reaches $550. 
  • Widespread Household Debt: 75% of surveyed worker households report carrying debt to manage living costs. 
  • Compromised Spending & Calorie Limits: Estimated average food consumption sits at 1,985 kilocalories per person per day ($2.50 per person per day). To supplement low base pay ($210 minimum base wage), 56% of workers rely on overtime work, and 66% receive variable bonuses, while 76% are assigned strict factory production targets. 
  • Workforce Profile: Women comprise 79% of respondents, 81% hold Unspecified Duration Contracts (UDC), and 81% earn $350 or less per month. 

“My wage is low, but my expenses are high,” says Khut Sokha, a woman garment worker who’s worked in a factory sewing section for 16 years. “As a widower, my biggest burden every day is the bank loan I must repay—$200 every month—and my three children’s education. As for food, that comes after—we try to cut back as much as possible and eat just rice with salt or prahok to get by.” 

“Yearly wage adjustments simply haven’t kept pace with rising living costs, forcing families to take on debt just to get by,” says Yang Sophorn, President of the Cambodian Alliance of Trade Unions (CATU). “By bringing our own survey data to the table during the 2027 minimum wage negotiation process, we are showing that our proposed $250.66 minimum wage isn’t about luxury—it is a fair, necessary step toward dignity and basic survival.” 

The survey briefing notes that recorded household expenditure ($504) reflects what families spend under tight economic constraints, not the full cost of meeting normative living needs. When wages fall short, families must reduce food intake, postpone healthcare or education spending, and take on debt. These findings give Cambodian trade unions an empirical basis to advocate for adequate wages, fair working conditions, and sustainable supply chain practices. 

Asia Floor Wage Alliance (AFWA) Cambodian calls on: 

  • The National Council for Minimum Wage (NCMW) of Cambodia to consider the union proposal of $250.66 for the 2027 minimum wage. 
  • Employers to ground wage discussions in empirical worker data and address the $204 monthly gap between worker earnings and household living costs. 
  • Brands and Buyers to support responsible purchasing practices that enable suppliers to pay living wages. 
  • Investors and Consumers to support transparent commitments to decent work and fair pay in global garment supply chains. 

AFWA-affiliated Cambodian trade unions and other participating federations (CATU, CCAWDU, FTUWKC, FUFI, INTUFE, CUMW, CITUFED, and FULI) conducted the survey between June and August 2026 across 28 export garment factories in Phnom Penh, Kandal, and Kampong Speu provinces (sample size n=422). Participants were selected via multi-stage stratified random sampling among workers with at least one year of factory experience. Full methodology and findings are available in the briefing report: Briefing: Cambodia Household Consumption Survey Findings 2026 at https://asia.floorwage.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/09/Briefing_CambodiaHouseholdConsumptionSurveyFindings2026.pdf. 

About Asia Floor Wage Alliance (AFWA):  

Asia Floor Wage Alliance (AFWA) was founded in 2007 as an Asian labour-led global labour and social alliance across garment-producing countries (such as Bangladesh, Cambodia, India, Indonesia, Pakistan, Myanmar and Sri Lanka) and consumer regions (USA and Europe) to address poverty-level wages, gender discrimination, and freedom of association in global garment production networks. 

Media Contacts: 

Media kit: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1onXU5UgB96065kLhzVeBoCoZYjI_Yn4z?usp=sharing