Workers say that Asdet (Myanmar) Garment Co. Ltd. factory has announced that taking gate passes or leave will now be counted as absences and the daily attendance bonus will be fully deducted. They told the Federation of General Workers Myanmar (FGWM) that although the factory recently increased the daily wage by 9,000 kyats and the daily attendance bonus by 30,000 kyats, it is now making this announcement.

“They said the daily attendance bonus will be fully deducted whether it's sick leave or other absences, even if we go out with a gate pass, even if we miss work with official leave. The reason we apply for leave is because we’re afraid of getting our wages cut. This is unjust. We’ve never heard of anything like this before,” the workers said.

Although the daily attendance bonus is not specified in the law, a representative from FGWM stated that according to leave and public holiday labor laws, wages must be paid if leave is taken.

“The law allows for entitlement under leave and public holiday regulations. So, employers should follow those regulations when workers request not to have their daily attendance bonus deducted for legitimate leave. Ultimately, it's up to the workers to demand what is rightfully theirs,” they said.

The factory has 24 sewing lines and around 700 workers, currently manufacturing SMOG, CHAPTER, and Everme brands.

Asdet (Myanmar) Garment Co. Ltd. is operating on U Aung Thu Road, Shwe Lin Ban Industrial Zone, Hlaing Thar Yar Township, Yangon, and is known to be Chinese national-owned.