Minimum wage hike announced by the Myanmar’s National Tripartite Committee has finally been implemented by the Government from May 14, 2018. The new minimum wage now stands at 4,800 kyats/day. The news has come a little late as the hike was scheduled to be effective in March.
The National Tripartite Committee announced a 33 per cent hike in the minimum wage for garment workers of the country in January this year. The new wage rate is applicable for all industries for companies employing more than 10 persons, including garment sector – the key to Myanmar’s economic growth.
The implementation of new wages is expected to put all the protests on hold and make the garment manufacturing sector even more effective in terms of productivity.
Low wages were the major cause of concern among the garment workers in the country. Resentment over low wage resulted into several protests in Myanmar over months.
Currently, 33 per cent of local garment production in Myanmar is exported to Japan, 25 per cent to South Korea, 2.4 per cent to the US and 2.4 per cent to China, alongside a major chunk to European nations.
The garment industry in Myanmar has been a major source to fetch foreign exchange for the country and offers huge job opportunities. Even those who are deprived of basic education can also get an employment opportunity in the garment and textile industry depending on their skills.
It is being speculated that by 2020, Myanmar will have 1.5 million workforce in the garment industry to reach US $ 8-10 billion in exports.
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