By Yoon Sat May 10, 2024
The workers complained to the labor offices to help resolve the dismissals, but the officials of the relevant offices avoided by just telling them to sue.
“The case is filed because the employer violated the EC contract. The employers dismiss the workers if workers violated EC contract. The Department of Labor should sue the employer under the article 39 if they violated the EC contract. We want them to do that but they are just issuing us letters to sue if we assume that we are injured. So, the case is finished if the workers can’t afford to sue. They neither get damages or rehired. The ministry missed to sue the employer and the justice for the employer was loss. There are six cases Solidarity of Trade Union, Myanmar (STUM) helped us sue the employers and get the justice. We mean the Department of Labor is avoiding these issues,” said a worker activist.
A worker from ZYZ Apparel Co;Ltd from War Ta Yar Industrial Zone, Shwe Pyi Thar was dismissed on February 1st 2024 for taking a later gatepass and the case wasn’t resolved after negotiating at the township department of labor and the department just issue a letter to follow the legal laws and the worker sued the employer.
“I mean there is two things. As the dismissed worker have EC contract, they filed to the Department of Labor, even if they don’t, they will file to the Factory and General Labor Law Inspection Department. They are asking to be rehired but the employer is giving damages instead and don’t accept the worker to return to the workplace at all,” they said.
Workers who dismissed filed to the Department of Labor as they have an EC contract and the Department of Labor should sue the employer who violated the EC contract under the article 39. But the officials issue the workers documents to sue instead of taking the action themselves which make 6 cases that workers sue the employer directly recently.
Factory workers had to work overtime for free, not being able to enjoy social security and days off, verbally abused and the rate of violations against them increase, as well as being dismissed continuously in the post coup.
Complaints were made to the Township Labor Offices for the grievances of such workers, but they were not resolved until the end. According to those working to help the workers' issues, the workers only issued documents to sue the employers themselves if they are injured since the coup d’etat.
