IndustriALL Global Union has filed complaints against three major garment brands – Next, New Yorker and LPP – at the OECD’s National Contact Points, accusing them of continuing to source from Myanmar despite evidence of ongoing workers’ rights violations under the military junta.

Despite overwhelming evidence of continuous violations of workers’ rights under Myanmar’s military junta, these brands continue to place orders in the country, profiting from the eradication of labour and human rights, according to a statement issued by the IndustriALL on November 13.

It said that IndustriALL, together with banned Myanmar unions CTUM and IWFM, have filed complaints against three brands, Next, New Yorker and LPP, at OECD’s National Contact Points in four countries: the UK, Germany, the Netherlands and Poland.

The complaints are over the companies’ breach of OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises on Responsible Business Conduct, which call for, among other things, companies to operate ethically and responsibly regarding human and labour rights.

‘Brands that stay in Myanmar are benefiting from an environment of fear, forced labour, and exploitation. There are widespread, comprehensive reports on the extensive violations of workers’ rights and there is no freedom of association in the country,’ IndustriALL general secretary Atle Høie said.

Human rights due diligence requires worker involvement and independent verification, which is impossible under the military rule, he mentioned.

The textile and garment industry has become an important way for the country’s military rulers to inject foreign money into a collapsing economy, the statement claimed.

Meanwhile, Myanmar’s military junta has banned unions and arrested their leaders, denying freedom of association and preventing unions and other workers’ organisations from operating.

There are reports of forced labour, workers’ rights violations, increased precarious work and collapsing wages. A tracker developed by the Business & Human Rights Resource Centre monitors abuse in Myanmar’s garment industry.

By the end of June this year, 556 cases of alleged labour and human rights violations were documented across 266 factories linked to international brands, the statement mwentioned.

‘We have been urging multinational companies to exit from Myanmar as their existence contributes to the severe violations of human rights and labour rights in the country. The brands pretend they comply with the OECD guidelines and human rights due diligence, which is impossible under a military dictatorship,’ IWFM president Khaing Zar Aung said.

She said that industrial zones in Myanmar remained under martial law, with the right to freedom of association being banned.

The ILO’s Commission of Inquiry had investigated and confirmed severe violations of freedom of association and forced labour in the country, yet companies continue their operations, disregarding international guidelines and ILO conventions, Aung said.

IndustriALL is campaigning for brands to safely disinvest from the country.

In 2022, discussions between IndustriALL and several garment brands operating in Myanmar concluded with a Framework Principles of a Brand’s Responsible Business Disengagement from Myanmar, outlining a responsible exit from the country.

Primark, New Look, Inditex, H&M, Lidl and Fast Retailing have followed this agreement.

“There is significant evidence of systemic violations of workers’ rights and brands that remain in Myanmar cannot claim ignorance of the abuses, said Atle Høie.

He said that the largest global brands have already left the country – brands that stay prioritize profits over human and workers’ rights.

‘We are considering filing further complaints regarding other brands that remain,’ Atle Høie added.