Myanmar Version - https://www.myanmarlabournews.com/news/664
Introduction
Garment factories reported in 2022
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The number of labor-intensive garment factories was reported 134 times, and there were 96 garment factories that violated labour rights. There have been 19 factories in the news more than once among these garment factories.
In addition, 28 non-garment establishments and factories reported 30 labour rights violations. A total of 2 establishment and factory have been mentioned more than once. (Chart-2)
Non-garment establishments and factories reported in 2022
Factory unions
Trade unions are organizations representing workers, and were formed to build good relations between factory owners and workers and to resolve their grievances.
According to Myanmar Labour News information, only 35 factories know whether they have a union. It turns out that the activities of union members have been suspended due to the crackdown by the Terrorist Military Council (State Administrative Council).
Of these 35 factories, news of 30 garment factories was reported. Among the 14 unionized garment factories, Charming Garment MFG. Co., Ltd in Hlaing Tharya Industrial Zone (2), which produces the ETI Member brands, dismissed its 290 workers, including union members, due to losses.
SIOEN Myanmar Garment, which produces the SIOEN brand, used the political situation to severely repress workers. In 2022, two workers and a female worker leader were arrested at the factory by military council forces, and the dismissals were made illegally. There was a trade union, but it turned out to be completely inactive due to the political situation. So, the factory workers said that in just one month 60 workers were laid off.
Honor Apparel garment factory threatened the union with the law regarding the help for compensation for dismissed workers. It is learned that union leaders have been forced out of the workplace. The workers said the factory produces the H&M and ZARA brands. So, they notified the brands, but they ignored it. Myanmar Labor News has reported four times on the Honor Apparel garment factory, which faces the most worker complaint in 2022 due to labour rights violations.
The Myanmar Knitting Factory in Pathein produces the M&S collection. During the Covid 2020 epidemic and the 2021 coup, the factory was temporarily closed, reducing more than 4,000 workers. Workers said that if the factory reopens, priority will be given to former employees to their original positions and salaries. However, with the factory reopening in 2022, union leaders and union members were no longer called back to work.
GTIG Huasheng (Myanmar) garment factory in Wahtayar Industrial Zone, Yangon has closed. The factory produces international brands such as PEP&CO and Primark, but there has been controversy over whether the factory was closed by law. In 2022, the factory established a yellow union and discriminated against other union members. When the factory was closed, other union members objected because it was against the law. The union established by the factory said "everything was completed after receiving compensation".
Workers who tried to form a union at TENGYU garment were fired. It is learned that this factory was not unionized in the first place. Workers were forced to work night shifts against their will. In addition to illegal layoffs, workers said after looking for faults, workers who tried to form the union were fired.
The workers complained that the Lucky Fortune garment factory did not allow them to form a union, but threatened them to work. There were unlawful dismissals, and they worked overtime without a Sunday off and did not get overtime pay. Despite paying social security contributions, they could not take leaves including medical leave. Their employment was terminated if they were absent for 2 days. More than 200 daily labourers were paid 3600 MMK per day, and they were not appointed permanently and were dismissed if they were not needed. Lucky Fortune garment factory, which produces brands such as Bershka, Zara, and ONLY, received 4 complaints in 2022 concerning violations of labour rights. This factory is one of the factories that receive the most complaints with 4 times.
YES1 garment factory produces the BLACK YAK brand, and it was originally a unionized factory. As a result of the arrest of the union leaders who were working in the workplace, the union no longer exists in 2022. Because there was no union, workers could not take leaves. Over 7000 MMK was deducted if workers were absent. It was necessary for workers to submit requests for social security leave 2 days in advance, and medical leave was not granted at all to workers. All supervisors, supervisors who manage the workplace, were accused of abusive language, and those who failed to meet targets were forced to work until they meet the targets without overtime.
Brands' Accountability and Responsibility
Clothing brands made in a garment factory are called brands. Alternatively, these brands give jobs to factories. These brands also audit factories before sourcing. Because of this, some workers filed complaints against brands for violating their rights.
According to statistics collected in 2019, there were over 590 garment factories in industrial zones in Yangon. Most of these factories produce famous international brands such as Zara, Only, H&M, Vero, Moda, KIABI, Mojito, Primark, M&S, Find-Out, and Guess.
Since these brands are international brands, workers and labour organizations know that workers' rights are always monitored by these brands. Therefore, in some cases between factory officials, employers, and workers, the brands used their leverage to facilitate dialogue between the parties. After the military coup, however, the brand did not solve the problems in some factories.
The Myanmar Labour News reported news of 96 garment factories 134 times in 2022. More than 90 percent of those 96 factories were reported to have violated labour rights, and the rest were strikes caused by economic hardship.
It was reported in the news that Zara's factories had the most labour rights violations. The 12 factories that produce the Zara brand have been cited 19 times for violations against workers. Lucky Fortune Factory on Set Sayar U Tun Road, Industrial Zone (4), Shwe Pyi Thar Township is mentioned 4 times in that news. This factory was not allowed to form a union to handle labour issues. The workers were fired illegally. In particular, workers from the Sagaing and Magway regions were fired according to the instructions of the coup military council. There was a risk of fire in the factory. There was no medical clinic. Being forced to work overtime on Sunday and not being paid wages, treating workers rudely, not being allowed leave, and not appointing daily labourers to permanent workers. The factory has been found to not be taking responsibility for workplace injuries.
The Only brand was reported 14 times for violations. A total of 8 factories producing the Only brand in Yangon's industrial zones oppress workers. They deny them the right to leave and overtime wages, forcing them to work beyond normal working hours, and being unlawfully terminated. It is learned that the temporary closure of the factory did not comply with the law.
Tianjin Fashion Milestone Garment is the factory that has been reported 4 times for the most violations against workers under the Only brand. The factory is located on Seik Kan Thar Road, Shwe Lin Pan Industrial Zone, Hlaing Tharya Township, Yangon Region. Also, it is a factory for international brands such as Sinsay, Vero, MODA, JDY, and Zara, including Only. Western countries sell the mentioned brands.
Tianjin Fashion Milestone Garment officials forced workers to work overtime on Sunday and they were not paid for it. Overtime without the will of the workers. If workers don't work overtime, they will be discriminated against. Daily labourers do not get paid for Saturdays. Drinking and providing water at work has some bad qualities. Instead of giving earned leave, cash is paid for it. It is learned that the operational line was abolished without the knowledge of the Workplace Coordination Committee (WCC), and the workers were treated rudely. In October 2022, the factory fired 200 workers with notice fees of one month.
Another 7 factories in Myanmar that produce H&M, a world-famous brand, also reported 10 violations of labour rights against workers. There are 3 factories that have been reported 2 times because workers came to speak out. Those factories are Textile Palace, Myanmar Jiale Fashion Garment, and KINGSRICH (Myanmar) Fashion Garment Factory.
The Textile Palace factory asks for an increase in the hourly production rate, and workers have to work during breaks. There is no responsibility on the part of the factory towards the workers, and the workers are forced to work overtime. The workers have said that the factory will no longer provide welfare support to its workers.
The Myanmar Jiale Fashion Garment factory requires workers to work overtime on Sundays without overtime pay. They worked overtime without a day off for a whole month. It is learned that the supervisors used abusive language and pregnant women were employed on the condition that they were not allowed to take leave. They had to leave their jobs when they gave birth.
Ginisang Thonli garment factory, which produces the H&M brand, fired more than 80 workers who had national registration cards from the Sagaing and Magway regions. The factory did not give any compensation and said that it was instructed by the military council. But the brand ignored it.
VERO MODA women's clothing is produced in some garment factories in Myanmar. Vero Moda is sold in large stores worldwide. Three factories that produce this brand have been reported six times for violating the rights of Myanmar workers. Among them, Myanmar Jiale Fashion Garment 3 times, Myanmar All Rich 2 times, and Huabo Time Factory 1 times. Although the Myanmar Jiale Fashion Garment factory is based in Yangon, and Myanmar All Rich and Huabo Time factories are based in Pathein City.
Factories based in Pathein, produce ZARA and ONLY brands including VERO MODA. Myanmar All Rich is a sub-factory of Huabo Time and was temporarily closed last December. Workers were, however, only given one month's notice of fees after negotiations between the factory and the workers regarding the factory's closure.
The M&S brand is a clothing brand of the Marks & Spencer group. Being an international brand, their clothes can be worn from head to toe. Currently, the brand M&S has reportedly left Myanmar.
Yangon-based factories such as KINGSRICH (Myanmar) Fashion garment, TRISTATE MYANMAR, and Myanmar Knitting produced the M&S brand and were reported 4 times for labour violations in 2022. Workers were forced to work overtime at the KINGSRICH (Myanmar) garment factory against their will and without prior notice and threatened with being fired if they did not work overtime. If one day is absent, more than 20000 MMK will be deducted. Worker productivity will be reduced by 2 days of absence. Overtime is only paid at 600 MMK per hour by the factory. The factory does not hire full-time workers permanently and dismisses daily labourers if they are absent for a day. The factory does not take responsibility for workplace injuries. It is learned that without arranging a ferry, the workers were forced to work until late at night. They complained to the relevant labour offices and labour officials visited the factory, but the conditions faced by the workers have not changed.
The workers in the TRISTATE MYANMAR factory were called early in the morning for overtime and had to work on the weekend against their will, according to the workers. In addition to this, they had to work during lunchtime because of the increase in the hourly production rate.
The Myanmar Knitting garment factory in Pathein was closed during the Covid-19 pandemic, but the factory promised to rehire its employees to their original positions if the factory reopened. The workers said that union leaders and members of the union were not reinstated when the factory reopened, despite promises of reinstatement.
One international brand that has been reported 4 times for labour violations is MOHITO. 2 MOHITO suppliers had complaints. Among those factories, Myanmar Bestex Garment was reported 3 times. Workers from the Sagaing and Magway regions were fired. Workers were not allowed to take leave in accordance with the law. During working hours, female workers were subjected to abusive language. In order to meet their targets, they forced workers to work overtime without overtime pay. Casual leave and social security benefits were not provided.
The workers at another factory, SYSMM Apparel Manufacturing, were forced to work overtime without their consent. The workers said that they were forced to work beyond normal working hours and were not given legal benefits.
Another international brand is KIABI. Textile Palace Co., Ltd., GTIG-EASTER, and Dishang Kenny garment produce this brand and have been reported 4 times. Among them, the violations committed by the Textile Palace Co., Ltd. factory against the workers have already been mentioned.
After the fire broke out in the factory, despite not giving interim compensation, the GTIG-EASTAR factory said to deduct 50000 MMK which was supported by the EU to the workers. This factory produces brands such as TESCO, OVS, KIABI, C&A, TESCO, ZARA, House, and F&F.
The Dishang Kenny garment factory does not provide workers with leave benefits. They forced workers to work overtime against the workers' will. The workers said that if they were absent for a day, the factory will cut their salaries. The workplace canteen is not good enough for eating at work.
There were violations against workers in 3 of the Yangon-based factories that produce the Primark brand. The factories are Myanmar Guotai Huasheng Glory Fashion Co. Ltd., Zong Hong Myanmar Garment, and GTIG HUASHENS Myanmar.
Myanmar Guotai Huasheng Glory Fashion Co. Ltd. factory did not allow leave for workers, and if they are absent for a day, more than 15000 MMK will be deducted. If they are absent, the skill bonus will be reduced. After making social security contributions, they were denied the right to be allowed leave. Although there is a clinic, there is almost no service. After taking leave, they transferred the workers to another line and another department. There was discrimination in the workplace. Even though 500 MMK of welfare fees are collected every month, those who have joined the union are not given supporting money. They were insulted, pressured, and threatened. They were forced to work overtime without their will and were forced to sign a warning letter if they had too many rejected clothes.
The workers at Zong Hong Myanmar Garment Factory said that they worked 10 hours a day and earned only 4000 MMK. This is less than the fixed minimum wage announced in Myanmar. Covid-19 rules were not followed at the factory, and the ferry was rarely available. It is said that the employment contract was signed unilaterally.
GTIG HUASHENS Myanmar has terminated more than 50 daily labourers who exposed labour rights violations. The factory did not pay full overtime wages. After taking a gate pass, it was deducted from their salaries. It is learned that union members were discriminated against.
Workers from the Myanmar Pou Chen factory protested in 2022. The Myanmar Pou Chen factory produces a world-renowned brand of Adidas shoes. The factory is located in Yangon's Shwe Pyi Thar Township and employs more than 7000 workers. During the military coup, in order to solve the general crisis of living costs, the workers asked factory officials to increase their wages. In asking for this increase, the workers made a formal request and started negotiations with labour officials and factory officials. However, despite more than a month of negotiations, there was no resolution, so they started protests inside the factory. Protesting workers requested to take responsibility from the factory for lost bicycles, amend unfair rules, fix unclean drinking water, take action on the rudeness of supervisors and leaders, lower the demands of increasing targets, arrange a ferry, and increase the minimum wage to 8000 MMK.
In response to the protesting workers, the factory drove out the protesting workers, called armed organizations, responded with factory rules, and finally, workers were refused entry.
Negotiations were held at the township labour office, but 27 workers were fired. International media reported the issue with Adidas products for the World Cup, so Adidas intervened. The factory agreed to some of the demands and rehired some of the workers, but they did not agree to increase wages according to Myanmar's law. This news was reported 11 times in 2022, and it was the most reported news.
The factory where all the factory workers participated in the protest was JW (ADK) garment factory in Mingaladon Township, Yangon. All the factory workers protested because they could not get leave, medical leave, casual leave, and earned leave. If they are absent for 2 consecutive days, the workers will be fired. Production fees, skill bonus, and attendance bonus were not paid. And the supervisors kept shouting in the workplace.
In 2022, the news of 8 factories and businesses where workers went on strike was reported and they are Grab Food, CSG (White Tiger), JW (ADK) Garment, Myanmar Luxury Group Company, Mirae or New Way, Creative Sewing Garment, Cotton Textile Garment Myanmar (Golden Color Fashion) and Myanmar Pou Chen.
In those factories and businesses, workers protested because order fees were changed, payday was late, workers were asked to make replacement work, and skill bonuses were cut.
What are the most violations by garment factories?
There were 164 news stories about 124 factories in 2022, which showed that wages were cut due to taking leave and absence, denial of rights, discrimination, slanderers, and overtime without paid time off.
Out of the reported news, overtime work was reported in 55 factories, and that news was published 63 times. Among them, there are 33 factories that ask for overtime and do not pay overtime wages. In those factories, there are 3 factories that have been reported more than 2 times. Those factories are Myanmar Bestex Garment, Tianjin Fashion Milestone Garment, and Myanmar Jiale Fashion Garment.
Leave was not allowed in those factories. Women were sworn by supervisors in the workplace. In the course of working hours, workers were forced to work overtime by stating that they had not met targets and were not paid for their work. Workers had to work overtime on Sunday which is a public holiday and were not paid. And workers had to work overtime unwillingly and faced discrimination if they did not work overtime. The workers stated that they were not given any leave, medical leave, etc.
In addition, there were 28 factories that forced workers to work overtime without their will, which was reported 30 times. Dishang Kenny Garment and NEX STAR GARMENT were reported twice. Among them, Dishang Kenny garment asked workers to work overtime on public holidays. Workers with more than 3 months experience were not hired permanently. The workers did not have the right to enjoy the protection of the law. If they are absent, wages will be deducted. It has been reported that the dining room was not clean, and workers were forced to work late into the night against their will.
Notably, workers in five factories staged protests in the compound of the factories because their wages and rights had been cut and reduced. The factory management stopped protesting inside by bringing soldiers and police to the compound and threatening to arrest workers.
Leave benefits
Among the reported factories, there were 30 factories that did not allow workers to take leave, and there were 33 news reports about these factories. 3 of those factories were published 2 times each. Lucky Fortune, Myanmar Bestex Garment, and Myanmar Guotai Huasheng Glory Fashion Co. Ltd. were published twice. There has already been mention of Lucky Fortune and Myanmar Bestex Garments' violations against their workers.
Myanmar Guotai Huasheng Glory Fashion Co. Ltd., garment factory did not give casual and earned leave to the workers. If workers are absent, a total of about 20000 MMK will be deducted from daily wages, attendance bonus, and overtime pay. Workers were forced to sign if they did not meet targets. If workers sign three times, they will be fired. There was no medical leave. Overtime fees were not paid. 30 workers were fired without a reason.
Garment factories and industrial zones
More than 90 percent of the garment factories in Myanmar operate in industrial zones. Factories investing in industrial zones enjoy tax exemptions and other business rights according to Myanmar laws. In industrial zones, special economic zone and normal industrial zone are different, and their rights are also different.
Factories get opportunities by investing in industrial zones, but factory workers have no rights. In addition, labor offices where workers can complain about rights violations are located far away from industrial zones.
Therefore, workers do not get assistance from industrial zones, and industrial zone supervisory bodies rarely assist with labor issues.
Myanmar Labor News has carefully documented the industrial zones of the factories published. Among the industrial zones published in 2022, the Thilawa Special Economic Zone and non-industry townships were included. Mention these industrial zones, and it will be obvious that workers' rights are violated everywhere.
Myanmar Labor News has presented a graph of the industrial zones that violate the most labor rights. This chart is based on news of garment factories.
The number of workers
For 2022, Myanmar Labor News published 124 factories' news and asked about 85 factories' workforce. As these factories employ close to 85000, news coverage has helped workers.
Conclusion
On the Myanmar Labor News Page, there were news stories of violations of workers' rights by factories, and there were written messages on page messenger and comments. Most of them said they did not commit any violations so the news must be taken down. Most of these factories do not fix working conditions. Usually, they work with labour officials to hide the real situation. Another type of method is to use money to write en masse that the news is incorrect. If we study those comments, it is clear who is the leader and who does what.
Myanmar Labour News avoids personal matters when reporting the news. Just complain once and Myanmar Labour News doesn't report the news immediately. After studying the factory conditions, the news was published.
Myanmar Labour News has been facing threats and has been offered money when factories come to talk to remove the news. Recommend factories be made a happy workplace for workers, instead of making such offers to the press.
Rather than coming to Myanmar Labour News to negotiate for removing the news, it better changes the workplace into an improved one. In our opinion, that will result in a better society for the Myanmar garment industry.
Special thanks to businesses that have changed their workplace due to Myanmar Labor News, business persons, brands, and workers who helped.
Myanmar Labour News hopes to provide more accurate information in the coming years.
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Myanmar Labour News
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