By Min Ni Kyaw - Mar 20, 2025
Workers at He MeT Company Limited garment factory, have reported that the factory does not grant any of the legally entitled types of leave, instead marking absences and cutting wages and entitlements accordingly.
“Forget about bereavement or marriage leave — we don’t even get emergency leave, medical leave, or earned leave. But social security contributions are deducted every month. We don’t get any kind of leave. They just call it absenteeism and cut the daily wage and bonuses,” said one female worker.
Workers stated that they face a significant reduction in their salaries due to deductions, with MMK 6,800 cut as absentee fines and MMK 20,000 from attendance bonuses. According to Myanmar’s labour law, such wage deductions are not allowed, and section 5.3 of the "Guiding Principles for Responsible Business Conduct for Foreign Investment" also clearly prohibits punitive wage deductions.
According to workers, supervisors resort to shouting and verbal abuse if production targets set by the factory are not met, force daily workers to do additional tasks, and do not officially confirm employment until after six months. There are also underage workers aged 15 or 16 working without medical clearance, performing the same tasks as adults.
“The factory ferries are overcrowded. Pregnant workers are forced to ride at the back of the vehicle, and there have been cases of miscarriages. There’s discrimination in the workplace that causes harm to workers. Overtime sometimes goes until 2 a.m., and we face pressure and resentment if we refuse. Line 11 supervisor sells goods and forces us to buy from her. We get an ‘A’ grade; we only get a ‘C’ if we don’t, no matter how skilled we are. She’s been deducting MMK 100, 200, 300 — even up to 500 or 700. These cuts have been going on for about six months, and it’s seriously hurting the workers,” another worker said.
More than 900 workers are currently employed at He MeT garment factory, and each production line is reportedly assigned over 40 pieces per line. Brands such as CHAPTER, MAKE TODAY AMAZING, Pageone, and JEAN PASCALE are manufactured the factory. The factory is owned by a Chinese national and operates near the electricity office, Alal village, Twin Thin Thike Wun U Htun Nyo Road, Shwe Lin Ban Industrial Zone, Hlaing Thar Yar Township, Yangon.
