The Pou Chen Group is refusing to reinstate 26 workers at its Yangon factory that produces shoes for Adidas after they were fired for protesting against their low pay.

The workers said that the situation remains unresolved despite them having negotiated for two months with the factory, which is owned by the Taiwanese Pou Chen Corporation and and located in the Thar Du Kan Industrial Zone, in Yangon’s Mingaladon Township

Workers’ rights activists and workers have also been in discussions with the Department of Labour, but as of 20 December there was still no resolution, according to a worker who spoke to Mizzima then.

According to workers’ rights activists assisting the sacked factory workers, factory officials said that they cannot re-appoint the sacked workers, but they can give them three months’ severance pay. The sacked workers said that they were not looking for severance pay and just wanted to be re-instated.

On 8 December the Department of Labour said that the workers could file a lawsuit against the factory in a civil court. but, according to the rights activists the workers do not want to file a lawsuit because they do not believe that they will receive a fair trial in the junta administered courts. Because of this, the workers are now trying to negotiate directly with the factory.

Workers who have been dismissed from the factory are having difficulties finding more employment as employers do not like to hire workers who have previously taken part in protests.

A worker who was fired said: “I haven't had a job for almost two months now, so I need a job. Our negotiations with the employer were not fruitful.” They added: “We staged a peaceful protest because our wages were insufficient, because of that we were sacked.”

In 2018 the Myanmar minimum daily wage was raised from 3,600 kyats a day to 4,800 kyats a day.

Since the February 2021 coup employers in Myanmar have ignored workers’ rights and a majority of workers have become vulnerable to exploitation.