The history of wage struggle in Cambodia is a case study for the history of global capitalism as a whole.
Here's how it works: Multi-national corporations exploit workers in the most exploitable countries, producing goods at rock-bottom prices that are sold for sky-high profits in affluent countries. When the workers protest the injustice, the armed force of the state *always* intervenes to protect the interests of the capitalist ownership class to maintain the on-going exploitation. This is why many workers around the world know capitalism viscerally as a system that robs workers at gunpoint.
This capitalist system of exploitation could not continue to exist without the armed intervention of the state. Without the police brutally cracking down on workers, businesses would have long ago started paying workers living, dignified wages and many would likely become worker-owned and managed. So much for free markets.