NagaWorld employees granted pay rises following Thursday protest

In Cambodia and workers at the giant NagaWorld integrated casino resort reportedly won a rare victory over the weekend after reaching an agreement that is to see them receive pay rises of up to 30%.

According to reports from GGRAsia and the Reuters news service, about 3,000 employees of the Phnom Penh venue staged a protest on Thursday to demand salary increases and better working conditions. NagaWorld is run by Asian casino operator NagaCorp Limited and the strike action was purportedly also asking for local union representative Chhim Sithar be reinstated after she was suspended in September for allegedly attempting to organize a campaign for higher wages.

Successful strike:

GGRAsia reported that Hong Kong-listed NagaCorp Limited has now acquiesced to these demands by agreeing to recall Sithar, who serves as President for the NagaWorld Union, and increase the salaries of its Cambodian hotel and casino staff by ‘between 18% and 30%.’

Expanding enjoyment:

NagaCorp reportedly opened the 16-story NagaWorld development in 2003 and the facility currently features a 700-room hotel as well as a luxury spa, conference facilities and a casino offering a selection of over 1,500 slots as well as some 169 gaming tables. The Cambodian property is moreover currently in the process of adding a further 4,720 hotel rooms and 5.8 million sq ft of floor space via its adjacent Naga3 development with this $3.5 billion scheme widely expected to be open before the conclusion of 2026.

Employee exasperation:

Reuters reported that the current starting monthly salary for NagaWorld employees had stood at just $150 with workers having used the Thursday protest to demand that this rate be increased to at least $300 for hotel staff and $500 for those employed on the casino floor. The workers were angry that their wages were so low when NagaCorp had recently chalked up a 20% increase year-on-year in gross gaming revenues for the nine months to the end of September to $1.29 billion.

Winning unity:

NagaWorld employee, Hai Sopheap, reportedly told the news service that his compatriots had achieved their victory ‘out of our solidarity’ and that every one of his fellow workers had returned to their shifts on Saturday.