Myo Thein
Workers told the Industrial Workers’ Federation of Myanmar (IWFM) that a worker at Myanmar Zande Garment Factory was dismissed by management for filing a complaint with the labor office.
“In October, overtime became excessive and workers could no longer endure it. One worker filed a complaint with the labor office, and the employer summoned that worker to the office and dismissed them,” workers said.
Workers said that at Myanmar Zande Garment, legally entitled benefits such as casual leave and medical leave are not granted. When workers are unwell or have urgent matters and request leave, supervisors refuse to submit the leave request and instead mark it as unauthorized absence.
“If leave is not granted and it’s marked as unauthorized absence, more than 100,000 kyats is deducted for a single day. The daily wage of 10,000 kyats, the attendance bonus of 40,000 kyats, and all grade-based bonuses are deducted. We lose everything. They only talk about a daily wage of 10,000 kyats, and for service leave, even after completing one year, they pay only 6,000 kyats,” workers said.
Workers also reported discrimination in the payment of grade bonuses. Only sewing lines that meet targets through competition are given the designated grade bonus, while lines that fail to meet targets have their grade bonuses reduced.
Workers said that those who ask for wage increases are immediately threatened by the factory owner, OS staff, and supervisors, and told to submit resignation letters and leave.
“They demand production targets that workers cannot meet. The garments are padded export items, and to meet the target, each worker has to sew from two to three points. With 55 workers on a line, they demand more than 30 pieces per hour. When targets are not met, OS staff and supervisors point fingers and verbally abuse us,” workers said.
Workers also reported that more than 20 underage daily wage workers aged 15 and 16 are being employed inside the factory without medical fitness certificates issued by a doctor.
Myanmar Zande Garment Factory is a Chinese-owned factory employing more than 1,000 workers. It is located on Seikkan Thar Road, Industrial Zone 2, Hlaingtharyar Township, Yangon, according to workers.
