By Min Ni Kyaw - Mar 27, 2025
Workers at Sunme (Myanmar) Industrial Ltd, a garment factory in Yangon, reported that management rejected medical leave granted by doctors at the Social Security Board (SSB) clinic, instead marking such days as unexcused absences, cutting wages, and in some cases, terminating employment.
“Legally approved leave is not granted. Even SSB-certified medical leave is marked as unexcused. They deduct wages and label it as absenteeism. They fire us if we’re absent three consecutive days. There’s no such thing as casual leave here. We keep paying SSB fees every month, but if we miss a day, they deduct 7,800 MMK penalty and the full 50,000 MMK daily wage,” said a worker.
Despite claiming a labor shortage, the factory hires underage workers aged 14–16 without medical clearance and treats them like adult workers. Meanwhile, day laborers are laid off for lack of work, workers told the Industrial Workers Federation of Myanmar (IWFM).
Workers said the factory’s clinic lacks proper medicine and the toilets are unhygienic, leading to health issues. Supervisors allegedly demand high production targets disproportionate to the number of workers, and take workers’ bonuses.
“There are about 40 people on the sewing line, but they ask for 30 bundles per person. We skip water breaks, bathroom use, even lunch just to meet the quota. Each production lines supposed to get a 600,000 MMK weekly bonus if we hit the quota —15,000 MMK per person—but we only get 9,000 or 10,000. The rest is taken by the supervisors, and line leaders,” said one worker.
The employer takes no action despite knowing about the bonus skimming. Supervisors allegedly pressure workers to meet targets with aggressive language. Currently, workers are working overtime until 8 or 9 p.m. and even on Sundays.
Sunme (Myanmar) Industrial Ltd, located in Hlaing Thar Tar Township’s Industrial Zone 3 on Min Gyi Maha Min Kaung Road, employs around 500 workers. It is Chinese national-owned and produces TopTex and NEXT brand garments for export to Japan.
