Around 1,000 workers at the Chinese-owned SEN YU Garment Factory, which opened at Middle Village, BaMaw Secretary Road, Hlaing Thar Yar Township, have stopped work and are making demands.
The workers who sew international brands such as Sinsay, TERRANOVA and P&VV are not satisfied with the fact that they will no longer pay bonuses if they do not meet the standards starting from October, so they stopped working.
The workers are demanding that the HR Manager, who is mainly responsible for the workplace, be dismissed from the job and that to pay their wages as before.
At present, there has been no negotiation between employers and workers, and the workplace has been stopped. We have asked the workers in the workplace about these conditions.
(1) Please explain the current situation.
The current situation is that no one is working in the factory. Since yesterday, October 18th, the employer has suspended and filed the workers. They said that they would call the supers, liters, and supers to come to the office to solve the problem. At first, they asked 2 people to come, but they couldn't let them go. Then, they asked for the leaders to come at 14:00. Haven’t got a response yet.
(2) Are there any authorities taking place in the current workplace?
All the workers are in the factory. It's the 2nd day since we stopped working. There are no inspections upon the workers. Yesterday, some so-called gangsters left from the gate with 2 cars. Going up no down the stairs. I didn't see them holding any guns or with uniforms. They are gangsters’ styles with tattoos. At first, they broadcast that they were from the labor office, but there is not eye-witnessed upon that.
(3) It has been 2 days since the work stoppage, so what would you do next?
Yesterday, it is said that they would allow our demands and just before we leave also said that HR manager will be fired. She went back after 18:00 and it is said that it would be negotiated. And today the letter that reported the workers have found out. They reported to the labor office saying that to help negotiating as the workers can’t be negotiated anymore. At first, they called two young workers to come but the supers and leaders said no and they would go themselves. And this morning they said it will be 14:00 and all workers are here right now. The employer reported to the labor office that we don’t work and also can’t be negotiated.
(4) What are the workers’ demands?
There are 10 demands we appeal, but there are no negotiations upon any of them. They can reply like they would accept 5 of the 10 demands or something. But we heard that they filled us. A factory should give professional fees if they hire a professional worker. But they set hourly targets such as 50 or 100 and said that we would be paid only if we meet the targets. If we were asked 50, we gave and the next day we are appointed to a meet more targets. Its not they reduced, they asked an impossible target and not to pay. It is graded as A, B and C before but they don’t give anymore if the hourly targets they asked were not met.
(5) What rates are currently being paid?
Daily wage of 4,800 MMK and Provisional Allowance 800 MMK. Nothing said upon 1,000 MMK additional allowance which had been expressed. We are only getting daily wage and attendance bonus. There was a professional fee before but it has been abolished and only daily wage and attendance bonus left. Attendance bonus 30,000 MMK and monthly wage 168,000 MMK and that’s all. The factory has been operated for 6 months and they only hired the professionals. All are professionals in their respective fields.
There are day laborers at work. Now, the day laborers have been suspended for about 1 month. I don't know if they planned to do this in advance. EC contract is signed but they don’t give the book and kept it in the factory. It should be given. It should be employer 1 carbon, employee 1 carbon and labor office 1 carbon. We don't have a social security card yet, if someone had one from the previous office, they would have. If they would close the factory and can’t accept the workers’ demands, pay a fair compensation and do it. There is no negotiation committee or labor union in the workplace. By the end of July, we told to form the WCC. But we don’t hear anything just some words meaning that we should follow his will.
Suppose that there are 50 people in a line. If there is a lot to sew on one piece of fabric, the hourly is asked for less. If there is less sewing, then the amount is increased according to the population. Now, the reason we can't negotiate is that there is no expert fee for the knowledge I have. At first, we got paid a grade fee, but the salary doesn’t exile 200,000 MMK as they don’t pay it anymore. We got at the cavity last month and absolutely no in cutting. The supers give upon our professional level at the cavities.
Grade bonus is based upon our proficiency. It depends how much a worker can work and what is their abilities. If they have seniority proficiency, obedience upon the supers and target hits it would be A grade and C grade for absolute newbies who just start to work.
The workers who get A among ABC are proficient. If a worker gets 20 A, she can't be given 20. it can only be given 10, and then you don't have the right to give C, which is more convenient.
A child who gets 300MMK a day will be 30,000 MMK a month 500 MMK for 50,000 MMK and at least 40,000 MMK per month for a worker who should be given 1,200 MMK a day. The workers have no benefits at all. Missing a day costs 4-50,000 MMK cut. Daily wage 5,600 MMK, attendance bonus 20,000 MMK grade bonus is 40,000 MMK for A, 30,000 MMK for B and 20,000 MMK for C.
(7) Why did the workers stop work?
If the fabric is finished in the line, the worker has to stand up and pick up the fabric, or go to the toilet or drink water, then they would shout that who in which line, stand up and walk, 1 time or 2 times, and say that they will make the worker sign a warning if they have to say again and again and those are shouted by a microphone. It started at around 1 o'clock on Tuesday (October 17) and they said that they would give ABC Grades to the children in units. They told us to try that system and make out salaries convenient. So, if they can’t satisfy with us following their one-sided wills, the workers decided to stop work as they can hire those who are convenient with that system. So, the employer shouted with a mic saying that those who stopped working are recorded by CCTV and salaries would be cut.
(8) What difficulties would the workers have as the grade bonus will not be given anymore if the standards are not meet?
Livelihoods became difficult. We have high rice and cooking oil prices. If a bottle of a cooking oil price is 10,000 MMK their cut costs 2 bottle of cooking oil. It doesn’t hit so much for those who have a small family but those who with big family do.
Most workers live in dorms. A dorm at least cost 50,000 to 60,000 MMK a month. They cut half of our dorm rental fees. An A grader can pay half with his own money if 40,000 is cut to 20,000. But as they don’t give even a penny, we have to give the dorm cost ourselves so we would not be able to support our families or eat ourselves.
(9) What will be the main demands?
Yesterday request was to fire the HR Manager Daw Si Si May and to give the grade bonus we deserved. The HR Manager never stands with the workers. We don’t also want to bias only towards either the workers or the employer. We want her to be an integrated person who can negotiated between the workers and the employee. But she only favors the employer and suppress the workers too much. We got grade bonuses, convenient in the work and can negotiate and solve the problems before this manager was hired. But with her grade bonus are no longer paid and she fired the proficient workers with a notice field in the cutting session. And as it looks like those who are not convenient with the workers are going to be fired, there were no negotiations.
Actually, the hourly issue should be decided by the production manager but she is doing whatever she wants to. She acts like firing can be decided by her alone and no need to sign with the Chinese. She manipulates whatever she wants as she can speak Chinese, In the line, the production and the office have differences. Now if the workers are not done quickly, they won't get their wages paid. She said that she would not give much money for the grade bonus but instead by units, but she would give a maximum of 30. How would she pay for the remaining 20? She said she doesn’t know when we asked, At first there is no resolve at all and right now she said that she would revolve but circuitously
Thank you for replying.
