By Mu Dra - Jul 23, 2025
Workers at the Shun Yu Myanmar Garment Co., Ltd., located on Kanaung Minthargyi Road, Shwe Lin Ban Industrial Zone, Hlaingtharyar Township, say their labour rights are being violated inside the workplace, and they have requested assistance from the Industrial Workers Federation of Myanmar (IWFM) to make necessary changes and improvements.
Shun Yu Myanmar Garment Co., Ltd., owned by a Chinese citizen and employing over 200 workers, manufacture brands like Sinsay, Max, and Amisu. Workers report poor sanitation inside the factory and violations of workers’ rights.
“Chinese managers, translators, and supervisors use the area where we drink water to wash plates, do laundry, and clean their feet. The clerks even posted a sign that says ‘Understand like a human: do not wash your hands where people drink water,’ yet they themselves make the place dirty. There have even been cobras found among the garments as the factory is so unhygienic. The toilets are also unclean, and no medicine is available when injuries occur. We have to buy our own medicine. So, we really need a safe workplace and basic labour rights,” said a worker from Shun Yu Myanmar Garment Co., Ltd.
Workers say the employer is not granting earned leave or medical leave. No leave is granted even when emergencies arise and requests are made. When this happens, the daily wage and attendance bonus—10,500 kyat and 35,000 kyat respectively—are deducted, causing workers financial hardship.
Workers who leave early due to illness are penalized if they didn’t complete the full 8-hour shift. As a result, the employer cuts their daily wage, attendance bonus, production bonus, piece rate, and meal subsidy altogether. Even the hours they actually worked are not paid.
“They make us work overtime until 2:00 AM or 3:00 AM, and they still make us return to work again at 7:00 AM the next morning, without rest. They hold a grudge, put pressure on us, and scold us if we refuse to work overtime. There are even 15- and 16-year-old underage workers doing jobs not suitable for them. When it’s time to get paid, even though it should be given at 4:00 PM, they make us work until 5:00 PM before paying us,” said another worker representing the group.
Workers at Shun Yu Myanmar Garment Co., Ltd. have made the following demands to their employer:
1. The employer must allow workers to take the earned leave and medical leave they are entitled to.
2. The employer must stop forcing workers to do overtime and must not pressure them into doing midnight or overnight shifts against their will.
3. Chinese supervisors and line leaders must stop demanding unreasonable targets, scolding, yelling, using profanity, shouting in front of others, and retaliating when workers speak up.
4. The employer must clean up the workplace to prevent hazards like snakes caused by poor sanitation.
5. The employer must ensure the toilets are clean and must not allow washing of clothes and dishes in the drinking water area.
