Strike called off at shoe factory
In the latest phase of a long-running industrial dispute, hundreds of workers at the Tai Yi footwear factory staged a two-day sit-in outside the plant in Hlaing Tharyar township on June 15 and 16. The workers are protesting against the dismissal of two activists from the factory’s union.
Though the sit-in ended with the onset of rainy weather, the union has plans for further action, including the possibility of a sit-in on the factory floor.
“We have to think of the long-term health of our members. Our action will continue inside the factory,” said Ma Nwet Yi Win, one of the fired workers.
“We decided the workers should enter the factory, but they will not be working,” she added.
Ma Nwet Yi Win and Ma Moe Wai were dismissed by the factory manager on May 29 for being absent for three days without approval.
Ma Moe Wai said she had taken medical leave from May 26 to 28, for which she had produced a prescription from the social welfare department clinic. She also says she tried to call the factory but could not get through, and the manager had visited her at the clinic while she was sick with a fever.
“They’re not firing me because I was absent without leave, but because I am active in the union,” she said, adding that workers are entitled to six days’ emergency leave.
“I have not received any compensation. We are not protected by the law,” she said.
Ma Nwet Yi Win, who was dismissed at the same time for the same reason, said the union committee had tried to negotiate with the factory owner, who refused to rehire the workers. The union therefore decided to take action.
“The owner refused to rehire us, so the union decided on the sit-in until they do so,” said Ma Nwet Yi Win yesterday.
Contacted by The Myanmar Times, manager Ma Aye Mi Hlaing declined to comment yesterday.
However, the factory workers said the management had complained to the industrial tribunal that the sit-in was affecting production. Tribunal member U Ye Naing Win said the council had not received such a complaint.
The Hlaing Tharyar and Shwe Pyi Thar industrial zones in Yangon have a troubled history of labour disputes, primarily because factory owners are unable or unwilling to raise the workers’ low wages. In March, more than 5500 workers – from Tai Yi shoe factory as well as Costec, Ford Glory, E-Land Myanmar and Red Stone garment factories – demonstrated to support their demand for higher pay. According to a government statement, workers from four of the factories reached a compromise with employers and most returned to work. However, hundreds lost their jobs. The dispute at Tai Yi goes back to 2012.
On May 17, the National Unity Party held a labour rights forum in Yangon’s Shwe Pyi Thar Industrial Zone on May 17 where members pledged their solidarity and support for the workers’ cause and demanded better protection of their rights.
“We will support them if they ask us,” said Ma Myo Myo Aye, executive member of the National Unity Party. “The party believes in protecting workers’ rights.”
(Quote from Myanmar times online website on 17 June 2015)