WARDROBE CRISIS with Clare Press
Aug 21, 2026 · 37 min · 17 segments
H&M, Inditex, Adidas, Gap... Some of the world's most famous apparel brands source from Cambodia, where 1 million people are employed by the garment, footwear and travel goods industry. Low-paid work…
Tola MouenGuest
Clare PressHost
[laughs] How much income do you need to survive? How about to thrive? What does that look like for you? Obviously, survival is the essentials.
Obviously, all this depends on the cost of living where you are, but the basics don't change, as in you need to be able to strike a reasonable balance between money coming in and money going out.
This series is about workers in the garment supply chain, and we're diving into the story of different producing countries.
So this week, Cambodia, where about a million people are employed making apparel and footwear.
Now, if you missed our recent episode on the Philippines, do go back and check it out because it's a good partner.
Now, when I recorded my chat last year with Thola Mouyn from Cambodian Labor Rights Organization, CENTRAL, the Cambodian government was in negotiations around setting a new minimum wage, and it was gonna be effective from January twenty twenty-six.
The official line was that the decision reflected the government's commitment to gradual, predictable wage adjustments, balancing industrial competitiveness with worker welfare.
So does the new rate balance competitiveness with social protection, or does it just perpetuate the plight of too many Cambodian workers who simply don't earn enough to get by? A report by CENTRAL and ActionAid Australia reckons sixty-five percent of workers feel their wage is insufficient, and in twenty twenty-two, eighty percent of respondents said they had to borrow money to pay for fundamental daily needs.
He's a legendary human rights defender who has himself been in the eye of the storm.
Back in twenty sixteen, Cambodian prosecutors sought criminal charges against Thola and two other civil society leaders.
Human rights groups said the charges were baseless and politically motivated, and over a hundred international organizations called on the government to drop the charges, which did happen.
But I tell you this because it goes to show that doing this work, speaking truth, standing up for workers, is often dragged into politics, and it can be high risk.
[laughs] How much income do you need to survive? How about to thrive? What does that look like for you? Obviously, survival is the essentials.
Obviously, all this depends on the cost of living where you are, but the basics don't change, as in you need to be able to strike a reasonable balance between money coming in and money going out.
This series is about workers in the garment supply chain, and we're diving into the story of different producing countries.
So this week, Cambodia, where about a million people are employed making apparel and footwear.
Now, if you missed our recent episode on the Philippines, do go back and check it out because it's a good partner.
Now, when I recorded my chat last year with Thola Mouyn from Cambodian Labor Rights Organization, CENTRAL, the Cambodian government was in negotiations around setting a new minimum wage, and it was gonna be effective from January twenty twenty-six.
The official line was that the decision reflected the government's commitment to gradual, predictable wage adjustments, balancing industrial competitiveness with worker welfare.
So does the new rate balance competitiveness with social protection, or does it just perpetuate the plight of too many Cambodian workers who simply don't earn enough to get by? A report by CENTRAL and ActionAid Australia reckons sixty-five percent of workers feel their wage is insufficient, and in twenty twenty-two, eighty percent of respondents said they had to borrow money to pay for fundamental daily needs.
He's a legendary human rights defender who has himself been in the eye of the storm.
Back in twenty sixteen, Cambodian prosecutors sought criminal charges against Thola and two other civil society leaders.
Human rights groups said the charges were baseless and politically motivated, and over a hundred international organizations called on the government to drop the charges, which did happen.
But I tell you this because it goes to show that doing this work, speaking truth, standing up for workers, is often dragged into politics, and it can be high risk.
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