By Hsu Latt Phyu - Aug 18, 2024
Workers from MYANMAR HUA YUE garment factory which is operating with more than 900 workers at the Kalarkone village, Myaung Takar Industrial Zone, Mawbe Township, Yangon region said that they are being violated against by having to work excessive overtimes.
The factory which is owned by a Chinese national is manufacturing DOWN BARBARA LEBEK, bala bala brands jackets and duck leather apparels and there is no trade union in the factory.
“A worker have to sew two points in an hour in production line with insufficient people. They asked 30 per points so we have to deliver 60 for 2 points and have to work overtime if we can’t,” the worker said.
They are also having difficulties due to workplace violations such as not providing dinner and transportation while calling them all-night overtime.
“They call overtime non-stop. We have to work mid-night and all-night overtime every week. Those who don’t work overtime are treated with malice and humiliated. Only the supervisors are provided dinner but the workers are not. We also have to go back with our plan. The overtime wages are paid for our transportation. We don’t get any benefits. We just lose our labors,” said a worker.
Workers who live far from the factory have to live unproperly in the factory after working overtime. Overtime fees are also paid only after a week leaving the workers in financial difficulties.
The factory does not allow to take any type of legal leaves and workers are cut 6,800 kyats daily wages, 40,000 kyats attendance bonus; a total of 46,800 kyats and certain amount of expert fee for missing work a day. Workers also said that they don’t get paid the daily wages and the overtime fees fairly.
The working hours are from 8:00 a.m. until 7:30 p.m. (6:30 p.m. on Saturdays) and it changed from 8:00 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. since August 2, 2024.
Day laborers in the factory are hired only after they work for 6 months and it is a huge loss for them, according to the workers.
“Day laborers get paid only for the day they worked. They don’t have paid holiday. A day laborer fell from high when they tried to hung the clothes and took 3 days off after visiting the clinic. The factory cut them for taking off for 3 days and also fired,” they said.
The workers also said that they were forced to work quickly by saying that they will get paid fabric bonus but no one get paid actually. Although they finished the fabric output demands, the factory exploited them by other reasons.
“The supervisors treat the workers poorly. They verbally abuse us, force us to sign warning and move us to non-native departments without our consents. They are suppressing us in favor of the employer. They manipulate the HR to dismiss the worker whom they are not comfortable with after forcing them to sign a warning,” a worker explained the conditions in the factory.
The other violations according to the workers are the Chinese national factory manager directly manage the workers, raise their tone in the workplace, interpreters are given permission to manage the workers, cutting 500 kyats for print finger late, cutting the worker’s salary for vernation towards supervisors without their agreement and security stuff harass the workers during searches.
Workers are asking the following 8 points regarding the violations in their workplace.
1. The foreigners to not directly manage the workers.
2. The supervisors to not verbally abuse the workers and force the workers to sign warnnings.
3. To provide purified drinking water
4. To not cut workers’ salaries without their agreement
5. To give legal leave accesses
6. To appoint day laborers with 3 months of service as permanent stuffs
7. To not call mid-night and all-night overtimes without the workers’ consents
8. To provide transportation if the overtime is called
