By Myo Thein
Feb 20, 2026
Workers at Yuan Hong Garment Co.,Ltd say they have been required to work continuous overtime for more than three months without weekly rest days, according to complaints submitted to the Industrial Workers’ Federation of Myanmar (IWFM). Employees report that overnight and late-night overtime shifts are imposed every week, with no weekly day off.
“Overtime has been ongoing for three or four months now. Three days a week we have to work overnight shifts. For an entire month, we were not given a single Sunday off. Even in February, only the 12th and 13th days were granted out of six public holidays. The remaining days we had to work overtime,” an IWFM official said, citing workers’ accounts.
Workers say the entire factory is required to participate in overnight overtime. Those unable to comply are allegedly subjected to verbal abuse by supervisors. Line leaders have also reportedly threatened dismissal for failing to meet production targets or warned that workers would be excluded from overtime and required to leave at 4 p.m. if quotas are not met.
Production targets are set at up to 100 shirts per hour and 80 pairs of trousers per hour. Workers say failure to meet these targets results in threats of termination. In order to keep up, some forgo lunch breaks to continue sewing.
In addition, workers allege that management requires staff to attend meetings at 7:30 a.m., before official working hours, and threatens wage deductions for late arrival. Requests for gate passes due to urgent matters are frequently denied once workers are inside the factory, they said.
Employees also claim that skill allowances are unevenly distributed. Although some workers handle tasks equivalent to two factory sections, only ironing workers reportedly receive significantly higher allowances, with disparities amounting to more than half the amount paid to others.
Workers further allege that legally mandated leave is not granted. Taking a single day of sick leave results in deductions of 11,000 kyats in daily wages and 30,000 kyats in attendance bonuses.
“No inspections have taken place even though we repeatedly filed complaints with the labor office about excessive overtime. The factory does not respond, and overtime continues to be imposed beyond legal limits. Even workers aged 14, 15, and 16 are required to work these overtime shifts,” workers said.
The factory is located in Shwe Lin Ban Industrial Zone, Hlaingtharyar Township, Yangon, and is Chinese citizen-owned. Around 800 workers are employed at the facility, which manufactures manufactures brands including American Holic, Defacto, Hush Puppies, Begum, and Gemo.
