Myo Thein
Workers at Shun Yu Myanmar Garment Co., Ltd say they are facing serious difficulties commuting to and from work because the factory has arranged only one small ferry vehicle for more than 300 workers, according to the Industrial Workers’ Federation of Myanmar (IWFM).
“There is no proper ferry arrangement for workers, and no transportation allowance is provided either. After working overtime, it gets dark, and if workers are robbed or harmed on the way home, the factory takes no responsibility,” workers said.
Out of more than 300 factory workers, only about 300 people are expected to rely on a single small vehicle, while the remaining workers are not provided with any ferry service at all. Workers also said that skill grading is unfair and that some supervisors verbally abuse and shout at workers.
“They demand production targets that are impossible to meet. If a worker misses just four days in a month, they don’t receive any piece-rate pay or bonuses at all. Finishing QC staff and leaders are extremely aggressive they shout and insult workers every day,” one worker said.
The factory also forces workers to do substitute overtime on rest days without prior notice, acting arbitrarily and causing losses for workers. According to workers, legally guaranteed rights such as medical leave and emergency leave are not provided. Instead, workers are dismissed, and workplace health and safety protections are ignored.
“They deduct social security contributions from our wages every month, but when we take medical leave, we don’t receive any benefits for those days. Emergency leave is not recognized at all it’s treated as unauthorized leave. If a worker is marked absent for three days, they are dismissed. There is no clinic inside the factory. Even if we have a fever or stomach pain, there is no medicine available not even a place to rest briefly,” a worker said.
Workers also stated that before inspection teams enter the factory, records related to overtime are often falsified or altered, allowing labor rights violations to be concealed.
Shun Yu Myanmar Garment Co., Ltd is a Chinese-owned factory located on Kanaung Minthar Gyi Road, Shwe Lin Ban Industrial Zone, Hlaing Tharyar Township, Yangon. The factory employs over 300 workers and manufacture brands such as Amisu and Sinsay, according to workers.
