350 garment workers go on strike
Over 350 garment workers from the Join-Profit garment factory Industrial Zone (3) of Hlaing Tharyar, launched a strike on May 17, asking for labour rights as factory officials had committed violations, say strike workers. “We were not allowed to take any leave although it has been prescribed by labour law. Actually, we don’t even need to ask for this,” factory worker union’s secretary Ko Zaw Min told The Myanmar Times on May 18. He also said that factory officials never allowed workers to take time off and always cut their salaries if they took time off. The workers also said that factory officials and the worker’s supervisor violated previous labour contracts which had been agreed upon in front of Labour Department officials. Although factory officials promised to treat workers well, they were instead often rude and impudent.
