By Ma Ma - Jan 31, 2025
Wages are supposed to be paid on a piece-rate basis at Mai Yi Bei Garment Manufacturing Co. Ltd., owned by Chinese nationals. However, there is no fixed rate for each piece, and workers only receive the amount determined by the factory, according to employees who spoke to MLN.
The factory, located in Shwe Lin Ban Industrial Zone, Hlaing Thar Yar Township, operates with a workforce of over 1,200 employees.
There is no workers’ union in the factory, and it manufacture brands such as Defacto, RESERVED, and AEGULAR FIT.
“The working hours are from 8:00 AM to 6:30 PM, with two hours of overtime daily as standard. Recently, whenever there is urgent production, workers have been required to work until 8:30 or 9:30 PM almost every day. After finishing overtime, workers face difficulties commuting home safely. There are frequent cases of conscription which makes us feel unsafe. Even though we do not want to work excessive overtime, we are pressured by the employer to do so. Sundays are also supposed to be days off, but instead, we are called in for overtime. Although the factory operates on a piece-rate system where workers are paid based on what they produce, the production targets are set unfairly. We must produce whatever is demanded by the employer. Additionally, there is no fixed rate for the piece-rate system, and wages are only revealed when they are paid,” a factory worker said.
Workers receive a total of 78,000 MMK, including attendance bonuses and subsidies, and a weekly attendance bonus of 10,000 MMK. However, since they are not provided with legally mandated leave benefits, they face wage deductions when they take leave. Furthermore, workers experience difficulties when requesting gate passes for emergencies, and the factory deliberately delays the process.
“There are more than 50 underage workers aged 14, 15, and 16 working at the factory. The factory does not even require medical clearance before hiring them. When hiring over 50 new workers in a single day, the factory still does not follow proper procedures, violating labor laws. The toilets are unhygienic, and bottled drinking water is placed under direct sunlight, causing it to be warm when workers drink it. The canteen is also too small for the number of workers, so they have to eat however they can manage. Despite frequent media reports highlighting labor rights violations in the factory, there have been no improvements so far,” another worker reported.
Currently, workers have contacted the Industrial Workers Federation of Myanmar (IWFM) to seek assistance regarding their labor rights violations.
Factory workers are demanding the right to legally mandated leave, transparency in setting piece-rate wages, clean and hygienic toilet facilities, an easy process for obtaining gate passes, an end to excessive overtime work, and designated rest days on Sundays.
