By Myo Thein - Sep 26, 2025
#Letter
To:
Respected South Korean employer of Sunkid Myanmar Toy Factory and Management Team,
We are a group of 60–70 workers from the hand-stitching department. We are writing this letter because we want to openly and honestly share how we’ve been feeling and what we’ve been experiencing.
This factory is like our family. But our supervisor, Daw Thet Thet Khine, has been mistreating us in ways that no one should endure—not even family. She constantly abuses her authority and treats us as if we are less than human.
They made unjust Salary Deductions. Nearly 40,000 MMK was deducted from our wages without explanation in last September. We were told it was for ceremonial offerings and wedding gifts. Uniforms such as shirts and longyis were also forcefully sold to us and the cost deducted from our paychecks. This is our sweat and labour. We complied out of fear becase we we might lose our jobs if we spoke up.
In addition, the supervisor regularly uses our names to take out loans of 200,000 to 300,000 MMK per month. These are then deducted from our wages at the end of the month. She uses the support and assistance you and the management kindly provided to exploit us financially.
We are deeply grateful to the employer and expert for your kindness in helping us through difficult times. But now, that goodwill is being taken advantage of by the supervisor to make our lives harder, not better.
The mistreatment is not just financial. At work, she constantly threatens us with our jobs and hurls vulgar and degrading insults at us calling us extremely disrespectful names like "___ whore" and "slut."
Many of us came from our villages to work here. To be insulted like this makes us feel humiliated and some even feel like they don’t want to go on living. We are factory workers. We are no one's property and not here to be cursed or shamed.
We are expected to finish work at 4:30 PM, but we are made to stay until 8:30 PM every night, and until 6:30 PM on Saturdays. Yet, we are not paid even a single kyat of overtime wages.
They forge our names on OT documents without our consent. They say the pieces are "defective" and use that as an excuse to force us into unpaid overtime.
Even our lunch breaks aren’t fully granted. We’re forced to keep working if we haven’t finished, cutting into our rest time.
What We Are Asking For
We have reported these issues to the WCC and interpreters since we know the boss and the management are kind and fair but no action has been taken. That’s why we are now reaching out directly in this open and heartfelt letter.
1. Please help us recover the full number of wages that were unjustly deducted or borrowed under our names by Supervisor Daw Thet Thet Khine.
2. Please take effective disciplinary action against Daw Thet Thet Khine and anyone else involved in verbally abusing, threatening, and degrading us.
3. Please stop the forced, unpaid overtime and incomplete lunch breaks immediately, and ensure we are paid overtime wages properly according to the law.
We’ve endured this mistreatment for years because we’re afraid of losing our jobs and don’t dare return to our villages empty-handed. We sincerely plead with you to rescue us from this injustice.
Respectfully,
Workers from the Hand-Stitching Department
Sunkid Myanmar Toy Factory is located on Street 10, Industrial Road, Shwepyithar Industrial Zone 1, Yangon, and currently employs around 400 workers.
