Workers at an Adidas footwear factory in Yangon’s Hlaing Thayar industrial zone ended their sit-in strike on Wednesday after management agreed to raise their wages.
Management at Taiwan-owned Tsang Yih Shoe Factory agreed to increase the basic daily wage from 5,200 kyats (US$ 1.1) to 5,800 kyats and raise other allowances by 6,200 kyats, bringing the total to the 12,000 kyats the striking workers had demanded.
“The dispute is settled and we’re all back to work today,” a worker told The Irrawaddy.
Over 6,000 workers launched the strike on May 14, demanding a living wage, incremental raises, and fair overtime pay.
Workers said that the happy outcome was due to the unity of staff, who had stood firm in the face of a derisory earlier offer and a visit Monday from the deputy labor minister, who told them to get back to work.
Solidarity of Trade Union Myanmar (STUM) also praised their unity and the success of their demands.
Meanwhile, another labor strike is being reported at a plastic factory owned by Truce Green City in Yangon’s Shwepyithar Township, where workers are demanding an increase of their daily wage from 6,800 kyats to 10,000 kyats as well as the re-hiring of striking labor leaders the company had sacked, according to STUM.
Myanmar’s official minimum wage of 4,800 kyats (US$ 1) for an eight-hour workday has not changed since 2018 despite runaway inflation since the 2021 military coup.
In 2023, The junta’s National Committee for Setting the Minimum Wage introduced an extra daily allowance of 1,000kyats for worker in private sector companies with more than 10 employees, which was increased by another 1,000 kyats last month.
But the living wage in Myanmar is estimated at 12,000–17,000 kyats.
