ALPILAO INTERNATIONAL in Laos Seizes Passports, Violates Contracts with Myanmar Workers

By Min Ni Kyaw - May 18, 2025

Myanmar workers from ALPILAO INTERNATIONAL Co., Ltd in Vientiane, Laos say the factory has confiscated their passports and official documents, and violated contractual agreements made prior to their deployment. The workers were recruited through AR HTAN Co., Ltd agency in Myanmar, under promises of a $220 monthly salary.

“We were told that we could return home without paying compensation after one year. But they made us sign new contracts and seized all our passports and documents once we arrived in Laos, ,” said one worker.

Workers claim they are being forced to meet unrealistic production targets. The factory threatens to deduct their wages if they cannot meet the required number of caps per hour.

“We signed for a job with working hours up to 7 PM, including two hours of OT. But now, we’re working until 10 PM if targets aren’t met. The original promise was $220 per month, but now we must sew over 600 caps per hour to ‘deserve’ that pay. They deduct from our wages if we don’t meet that quota,” a worker explained.

They are earning only $8 per day currently, and wages are docked for missed days. On Sundays, they are required to make up lost production due to power outages. For those who’ve worked over a year and want to return to Myanmar, the factory is demanding $1,000 in compensation, workers said.

“We have to wait in the sun just to talk to the interpreter. They give us 50,000 Lao Kip per day for food. They won’t pay the food allowance if we’re sick or miss a day. They’re asking for about 45 lakhs kyats from us to be able to go home,. We don’t get our last month’s pay or the 10-day end-of-contract bonus either,” one worker reported.

Some sick workers are stuck in the factory dormitories because they cannot afford the compensation to leave. The factory has not checked on their well-being and continues to demand payment from those wanting to return, workers added.

ALPILAO INTERNATIONAL Co., Ltd is reportedly owned by Chinese national and employs around 700 workers. They are said to be manufacturing NEW ERA and AuthenLLC brands caps.