By Yoon Sat - Feb 15, 2025

Workers have been demanding a wage increase at Mirae or New Way Garment Factory, located on U Tayote Gyi Road, Hlaing Tharyar Township, Yangon Region, but as of now, negotiations have not yet been resolved, according to reports.

The factory, which employs over 400 workers, is South Korean national-owned and mainly manufactures Ziben brand jackets and long pants for export to South Korea.

Workers at Mirae or New Way Garment Factory have submitted a formal request to the employer since January 29, 2025, demanding an increase in the daily wage from 7,400 MMK to 9,500 MMK (an additional 2,100 MMK) and an overtime wage of 2,375 MMK per hour.

As a result of these demands, the Workplace Coordination Committee (WCC) held multiple negotiation meetings, including on February 7, February 11, February 13, and February 14, 2025, where the employer's representatives, including interpreters, managers, and employer-designated WCC members, participated in discussions.

Workers stated that the employer counter-offered a daily wage of 8,600 MMK, an additional allowance of 10,000 MMK, and an overtime rate of 2,000 MMK per hour, while workers agreed only if the overtime wage was calculated based on the new daily wage rate.

However, as the employer refused to adjust the overtime wage accordingly, the negotiations failed to reach a resolution, and workers submitted a formal complaint to the relevant authorities, according to one of the workers.