By Hsu Latt Phyu - Dec 14, 2023
A Shuangxi Myanmar Garment Factory worker said that they are forced to work overtime even on public holidays and all night overtime every night, and if they refuse, they are intimidated and discriminated against.
The factory is located at Makhayar Prince Street, Industrial Zone 2, Hlaing Thar Yar Township, Yangon Region. It is owned by a Chinese national and operates with more than 600 workers.
It is also known that JAKO brand adult shirt, pants and jackets are being manufactured by the labor rights violating factory.
In addition to forcing excessive overtime, other violations are also being committed such as demanding fabric standards much higher than the workers can sew, making it difficult to reach the target and abolishing the machine lines that do not meet the standards, and sending the workers to other machine lines. So, the workers said that they are having anxieties as the factory’s discriminations are making them to want to leave.
“They demand 40 points per hour for a single worker. Point fabrics are not sewed only a piece at once but two. Some fabrics are difficult. They abolish the cavities that didn’t reach the target and send to other lines. But everyday is miserable as the Chinese woman and the supers are keep scolding us also in the new line too,” a worker who don’t wanted to be named explained the working condition.
They also said that the workers are suffering mentally as they are used slanders and slurs against for not hitting the target.
The worker said that there are more than 20 day laborers with more than 3 to 4 months service, and as there are no permanent appointments for them, these workers are losing their leaves, social security benefits, seniorities, and this is also a violation of labor rights.
“There are some supers who treat the workers fairly. If there are such people, the managers and supers fire them without any grounds. So, the rest of the supers also have bad relations. The workplace became worse as they focus on not to be fired. I want to ask the employers that do they really want to be like that,” a senior worker explained about the labor rights violations within the workplace.
Currently, overtime is also called on Sundays, which is government holidays, and all night overtimes on other days too. it is stipulated in the law to call for overtime according to the consent of the workers but they are calling without their consents and discriminating if they refuse.
"On the days when we have to work until 10:00 p.m., we have to sleep at the factory, and get up in the morning to go back. But they don’t provide a ferry. We have to go back on our own, and came back to the factory ourselves. It's really difficult as they are doing whatever they want to do," the worker said
The workers appeals are to stop the labor rights violations, not to call excessive overtime, to ask their consent prior, to provide ferries for the workers who work overtime, the Chinese all super woman and supers not to use slanders in the work place, not to discriminate the workers and not to fire innocent workers.
