By Ma Ma - Mar 18, 2025
The Ministry of Labour notified the factory in advance about upcoming inspections after reports of labour rights violations at the Chinese-owned FZ GARMENT Co., Ltd.
Due to this prior notification, no significant changes were made in the workplace, and labour violations continue, according to factory workers.
The factory, located on King Wun Min Gyi Road, Shwe Lin Ban Industrial Zone, Hlaing Thar Yar Township, employs over 700 workers. However, it has no trade union, and rights violations persist.
The factory produces thermal wear, trousers, and coats under brands like DUNLOP, ikka, and Functionality Makes Your Life Comfortable.
“Illegal overtime is frequently enforced. The labour office came for an inspection when news of labour violations spread. However, the manager coached certain workers on what to say since the factory was notified in advance. Labour officials only questioned pre-selected workers rather than choosing randomly. So, the real violations in the workplace remain hidden. Until now, these violations continue,” said a factory worker.
Workers also report ongoing verbal abuse, discrimination, and unlawful dismissals.
Unfair production quotas are imposed, with 40 workers on a single production line required to complete 50 garments per hour. Workers face verbal abuse if they fail to meet the target,.
Because of these conditions, workers refrain from drinking water or taking bathroom breaks to meet production quotas. Even when targets are met, additional demands are made.
Underage workers are employed without proper documentation, and they are assigned the same workload as adult workers.
“There are no legally mandated leave benefits. We lose 9,000 MMK daily allowances and 35,000 MMK attendance bonuses if we miss a day of work. The factory claims to have a WCC, but most workers don’t even know about it. Many workers still haven’t received EC contracts. Sundays are also no longer rest days, as we have to work overtime almost every week. We are required to work from 8:30 PM to 11:30 PM daily at night. We are forced to even if we don’t want to work overtime,” another worker stated.
Currently, ferry transport for workers is overcrowded, and the factory's restrooms are unsanitary, emitting foul odors.
“There is a bathroom card system in place. We can only use the restroom if we have a card, and we must wait until the previous worker returns before we can go,” said another worker.
Factory workers have sought assistance from the Industrial Workers Federation of Myanmar (IWFM) to address these workplace violations.
Workers are demanding the cancellation of Sunday overtime, fair production targets, solutions to transportation issues, an end to verbal abuse from supervisors over production quotas, unbiased labour inspections, the removal of the restrictive bathroom card system and seek access to legally mandated leave benefits.
