By Myo Thein
January 11, 2026

The Solidarity Trade Union of Myanmar (STUM) reported that it received and handled a total of 231 requests for assistance related to workplace rights violations during 2025, according to its annual report.

The report notes that documentation could not be compiled for July and August due to security concerns, meaning records were available for only ten months of the year. More than 10,000 workers were affected by the reported cases. Of these, over 8,000—about 68 percent—were women. The report also lists 3,680 male workers and 151 people of diverse gender identities among the complainants.

STUM said its operations were disrupted by a major incident in 2025, when a township-level garment office linked to the organization in Shwepyitha Township was raided by a large security force. Following the raid, the office was shut down, and the keys were not returned until August 6, 2025.

As a result of the incident, labour case files received in July and August could not be recovered and were ultimately lost, the annual report said.

The report described the incident as a serious threat to the security and data protection of organizations working on labor rights issues.

Based on cases handled in 2025, STUM found that Myanmar’s women workers were most severely affected not by wage losses alone, but by the loss of legally mandated benefits.

The report added that labour rights violations reflect deeper socio-economic problems beyond statistics. While STUM continues to accept and assist with cases, pressure on the organization and delays in dispute resolution mechanisms have led to workers losing their entitled rights, it said.