By Hsu Latt Phyu - May 28, 2024

According to the workers from LITA MYANMAR garment factory which locates at Shwe Pyi Thar Industrial Zone 4, Yangon said that the factory call overtimes on Sundays, asked excessive fabric outputs, verbally abuse and not granting some benefits.

The workers said that the Chinese national owned factory operates with around 1,000 workers but there is no trade union. The factory is manufacturing GLACIER, CONVERSE, heartgreen and BURTLE WW brands apparels.

They are working overtimes on Sundays and also all evening and all night overtimes but not informed in advanced. They are neither able to refuse to work overtime and not provided transportation. Those who refuse to work overtime are discriminated against in the factory.

“They usually force us to work at other departments that we haven’t done before and also ask for the same outputs. They ask around 35 garments per hour and we have to work without going to toilet and takes a water break. They verbally abuse us every time they asked for fabric outputs even if we can finish,” said a worker.

They are cut daily wages 4,800 kyats and attendance bonus 10,000 kyats for a single day of absent. The working hours is officially from 7:30 to 6:30 but some departments are forced to work all night on the grounds of important fabrics without getting paid for attendance bonus and expert fees.

‘There are water storages sometimes as they provided water only with the bottles. The toilet water is cut during the break time and only given on working hours so there are difficulties. And we can’t go to toilets in working hours,” said a worker.

The workers request that to ask their consents before calling the overtime, to provide the transportations for the overtime, to give all workers attendance bonus and expert fees equally, to ask only possible fabric outputs, the foreigners not to directly manage the factory, not to treat poorly to the workers who visit the factory’s clinic and to provide sufficient pharmacies.