H&M supplier closure leaves 1,000 Myanmar workers jobless

More than a thousand garment workers in Yangon face unemployment at the end of June after Kings Rich Fashion, a supplier for global retailer H&M, announced it will shut down operations.

The factory, located in Shwepyithar Township, has blamed a slump in global orders for the closure after ten years in business. Workers, however, say the shutdown reflects a wider industrial crisis under Myanmar’s military rule. “They gave us a month’s notice, claiming orders had simply dried up,” one employee told The Irrawaddy. Compensation will be paid, but staff must now search for new jobs in an already fragile labour market.

The closure highlights the gap between regime leader Min Aung Hlaing’s promises to revive foreign investment and the reality of declining international confidence since the 2021 coup. Many Western firms pulled out of Myanmar in the aftermath, leaving the country struggling to attract new capital.

Kings Rich had long faced disputes over labour rights, and similar tensions are erupting across Yangon’s industrial zones. Earlier this month, Nay Shwe Win Garment Factory dismissed 19 workers citing raw material shortages. When colleagues staged a protest, another 103 were fired. At Handa (2) factory in Shwe Lin Ban, around 100 workers were terminated after demanding higher pay.

At Sun Rise (Myanmar) Fashion, nearly 900 workers resigned en masse when management rejected a wage increase from 15,000 to 17,000 kyats. Only 200 later returned. Labour organisers say employers are exploiting the economic crisis to purge veteran staff and union leaders, effectively dismantling collective bargaining.

The legal minimum wage for garment workers is 7,800 kyats for an eight‑hour day, a figure eroded by inflation. Basic staples illustrate the squeeze: two kilograms of rice cost about 5,000 kyats, while 1.6 kg of cooking oil sells for 15,000 kyats (around US$3.5). Advocates warn that workers are demanding raises simply to avoid hunger.

Myanmar’s garment industry employs roughly half a million people, mostly women, across more than 500 factories. Many are Chinese‑owned and notorious for gruelling quotas and poor labour conditions. With the Ministry of Labour accused of siding with factory owners, workers remain vulnerable to mass dismissals and blacklisting.

The looming closure of Kings Rich Fashion is more than a local setback. It underscores the fragility of Myanmar’s export‑driven garment sector, the erosion of labour rights, and the human cost of a collapsing economy under military rule.

-2026-05-19