In response to UN labour agency’s sanctions, Myanmar business groups pledge compliance

Two Myanmar business associations declared on Friday that they planned to comply with recommendations from the International Labour Organisation (ILO) to remedy abusive labour practices that prompted sanctions against Myanmar this month. The ILO, the United Nations’ (UN) labour agency, has 187 member states. The agency reached a decision on June 5 at the International Labour Conference in Geneva to impose sanctions against Myanmar. The sanctions, the ILO claimed, were due to Myanmar’s noncompliance with two of its fundamental labour rights standards: Convention No. 87, on the freedom of association and protection of the right to organise, and Convention No. 29, on forced labour. In a report explaining its rationale for imposing sanctions, the ILO offered recommendations for how authorities and employers in Myanmar could change employment and labour practices throughout the country to comply with the conventions. The Union of Myanmar Federation of Chambers of Commerce and Industry (UMFCCI) and the Myanmar Garment Manufacturers Association (MGMA) said on Friday they would cooperate with the changes recommended by the ILO. The MGMA, which has a membership of over 530 factories, released a statement in Myanmar, English, and Chinese saying it would coordinate with employers, workers, government representatives, and the ILO to implement the recommendations. The UMFCCI issued a similar statement on the same date urging compliance with the labour agency’s standards to minimise the effects of sanctions on employers, workers, and businesses. Myanmar Now called both the UMFCCI and Khine Khine Nwe, the general secretary of the MGMA, to ask for comment on the potential impacts of the ILO’s action on businesses in Myanmar and how they would cooperate with the agency’s recommendations. The MGMA general secretary responded only to say that she was busy with other matters and not available for telephone interviews. Electrical equipment assembly and manufactures of garments, shoes, and bags are among Myanmar’s largest industries. International firms source raw materials and supplies from abroad, then rely on low-cost labour in Myanmar for the manufacturing process before shipping the products elsewhere. Typically, these contractual arrangements entail paying only around a tenth of the products’ market value to the factory. In its Friday statement, the MGMA claimed that these international firms only contract with factories in Myanmar if they have ensured compliance with ethical standards. After the 2021 military coup in Myanmar, several large and well-known international clothing brands suspended operations in Myanmar, but some have continued to operate in the country due to the low cost of labour. Workers in training for garment factory jobs in December 2024 (Photo: Myanmar Garment Manufacturers Association) Labour activists and workers’ organisations in Myanmar claim that the largest garment factories in the country use forced labour, do not pay fair wages, fail to provide legal benefits, deny employees their rights to free association and expression, and persecute labour organisers and workers’ unions. In announcing the sanctions against Myanmar, the ILO said there should be mechanisms for the free exercise and implementation of its conventions on free association and forced labour, as well as complaint mechanisms and a review of relations with Myanmar businesses by other ILO members. The ILO also encouraged other countries to block any transactions with Myanmar entities that might enable rights violations, and to cut off supplies of weapons and aviation fuel to Myanmar. Phyo Sandar Soe, Assistant General Secretary of the Confederation of Trade Unions Myanmar (CTUM), praised the ILO’s decision, saying it would allow workers to block sources of revenue for the junta and hold rights-violating employers accountable. “It’s to stop businesses from committing violations and isolate them,” she told Myanmar Now on June 9. “Workers in factories have to make decisions using this. They have to use this as a strength to protect their rights.” When the ILO took similar action against Myanmar 25 years ago under the previous military dictatorship of Senior-General Than Shwe, sanctions resulted in the suspension of international orders, the blocking of financial channels, and foreign businesses’ withdrawal from the country. However, whereas at that time American and European brands dominated the contractual relationships with Myanmar’s garment industry, Chinese companies now hold a larger share of the contracts and business owners believe it may now be easier to find ways to work around the sanctions. According to the MGMA statement, 60 percent of the garments made in its member factories are exported to European markets, 20 percent to Japanese markets, and 20 percent to other countries. The statement also noted that its member factories employed some 700,000 workers, with the number of family members dependent on their income numbering in the millions. Despite praise of the ILO sanctions from the CTUM, some labour activists have expressed concern about the potential effects on workers, since member countries are free to take action as they see fit and may suspend business with Myanmar of their own accord. While they have declared they intend to cooperate to minimise the effects of the ILO sanctions, the UMFCCI and MGMA have yet to give concrete details about how their member businesses will comply with the labour agency’s standards.

In response to UN labour agency’s sanctions, Myanmar business groups pledge compliance

Two industrial organisations, including Myanmar’s largest garment makers’ association, claimed they would minimise the impact of sanctions by implementing the International Labour Organisation’s (ILO’s) recommended actions, but did not go into detail

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