By Myo Thein - Jun 23, 2025

According to a worker who personally encountered a sexual harassment, other female workers at the DongXin garment factory are experiencing the same and say those in charge are not providing protection.

“A foreigner from the cutting department is sexually harassing female workers physically. It’s not just one. It’s not just two. It’s quite a few,” said one female worker.

The mentioned foreigner has been working at the factory for around six months. The female worker said he touches and gropes parts of their bodies inappropriately and deliberately. Even though complaints were made about sexual harassment within the department, workers said not only were they not protected, but they were also pressured to quit their jobs.

“I complained to the factory HR manager because I was not okay with being harassed, but they just responded by saying ‘Did it make you lose something permanently, huh?’ They didn’t take action on the complaint. Instead, they pressured the person who complained to resign,” she said.

Women’s rights advocates say victims of sexual harassment may suffer mental and physical harm, reduced work performance, or even be forced to leave the workplace. They emphasize that factory managers and HR departments are primarily responsible for investigating and taking action on such incidents, and failure to do so could damage overall workplace conditions, according to an experienced HR manager.

It has been stated that past incidents involving monetary coercion and recruitment of female workers happened in last year at the DongXin factory and sexual harassments occur this year.

Dongxin Garment Co., Ltd. is located on Nawaday Min Gyi Road, Hlaingtharya Industrial Zone 3, Yangon. The factory is Chinese citizen-owned, employs around 1,000 workers, and the majority of them are women.