By Min Ni Kyaw - Feb 15, 2025
Workers at Dong Yu Garment Factory, report that they are forced to work overtime until 11 PM, and those who refuse face warnings and demotions in their wage grade. In addition to nighttime overtime, workers are threatened with demotions if they refuse Sunday overtime, despite Sundays being their official rest day.
“We don’t get paid immediately for Sundays—payment is delayed for three or four days. We get demoted in our wage grade and receive a warning if we miss a workday. We are forced to work overtime until 11 PM every night. We are expected to produce 1,000 pieces per day, supervisors yell at us and force us to stay late if we don’t meet the quota. We are called back for overtime until 11 PM If we can’t complete the quota. Sometimes, we even get forced to work early morning shifts on Saturdays. Supervisors say that demotions and warnings come from factory management, so we have no choice but to comply,” said a worker.
The factory’s regular working hours are from 8:00 AM to 6:30 PM, and on Saturdays, workers are supposed to finish at 4:30 PM. However, workers say they are often forced to stay until 11 PM. After lunch, they are not given a break and must work continuously until 6:30 PM before starting overtime.
“Overtime is forced on a daily basis, and certain workers are selected over others. We are threatened with demotion or dismissal if we say we don’t want to work overtime. So, we are forced to stay even if we don’t want to. We are so exhausted that when we finish work, the factory turns off the lights, and we are forced to sleep among the fabric piles or under tables because there is no proper resting area. Men can manage, but for women, it is a major issue.
We are still required to return for work the next morning after working until 11 PM. We are so exhausted that we don’t want to work overtime, but when leaders pressure us, we have no choice. About 100 workers are forced to stay for overtime every night, and we work nearly 100 hours of overtime in a single month,” said another worker.
Workers also report issues with restroom access and drinking water. To use the restroom, they must request a pass, and while purified drinking water is ordered from outside, frequent shortages cause significant difficulties. Since there is no Workplace Coordination Committee (WCC) inside the factory, workers find it difficult to raise complaints or negotiate for better conditions.
