By Min Ni Kyaw - Apr 10, 2025
# LetterMingalabar,
I hadn’t planned to write this kind of letter during this time, but I decided to share my own experience after seeing a post written by another sister yesterday. What I want to express is that garment factory workers are constantly working under pressure. For ordinary people, it might be comparable to hell—many cannot handle this line of work.
You must have seen the news about excessive production targets. But "excessive demands" is not just like a teacher-student relationship—it’s a workplace where verbal abuse is constant.
Workers who face such conditions every day don’t even have time to mentally relax. There are hardly any breaks or leave opportunities. Amid such struggles with work, family, and social life, we really look forward to the Thingyan holidays.
And it’s not just about the days off—we also look forward to the small festive events inside the factory before the holiday, which are held annually and are familiar to all factory workers and employers alike.
Our factory is located in the Thilawa Special Economic Zone. This year, I wasn't sure whether the factory would hold a celebration or not because of the earthquake, but to enjoy a bit, I brought three bottles of soju into the factory. At the entrance, the security guards saw the bottles I brought and I was sent to the office.
From that moment, I knew I would not be continuing my journey with the factory anymore.
I tend to speak honestly, and I already knew that the factory management doesn’t view people like me favorably. That’s also part of the reason I ended up resigning.
When asked about the three bottles, I immediately admitted to violating the rules and explained that I would be leaving the job.
That’s where my story begins. After I said I was resigning, the factory manager didn’t stop there. They started digging into the past, recalling various incidents involving me. I saw clearly how much resentment and bias they held.
Let me put that aside for now. Let’s talk about the factory’s actions. The factory usually doesn’t post their name on the notice board whether someone leaves voluntarily or is terminated for violating rules. But in my case, my full name and employee number were posted on the notice board.
I see this as discrimination. Other people who resigned—even those involved in serious misconduct—were not treated like this.
Being posted like that, for a woman like me, damages my dignity.
It was embarrassing and hurtful.
I asked the HR officer to take the posted notice down. When I went to claim my due benefits after resigning. She refused. When I said I would report the matter to the authorities, she responded indifferently, saying I could go wherever I liked.
The person I spoke to was a woman. As a fellow woman, I didn’t expect such a cold refusal.
Also, I wasn’t terminated—I admitted my wrongdoing and resigned on my own.
I left the job with my dignity intact. But the factory management tried to tarnish that dignity by posting on the notice board that I was terminated. That is clear discrimination.
I apologize if this letter causes any inconvenience. I would like to thank the media team.
More information related to Guston Amava Ltd can be found on the factory’s Facebook page.
