November 2022
The last two years have been a period of unprecedented turmoil in Myanmar and, in particular, for one of the country’s largest export industries, the garment industry.
More than 150,000 garment workers in Myanmar lost their jobs due to the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 and, just when it looked like exports were slowly recovering, the military staged a coup d’état on 1 February 2021. The coup has disrupted and destroyed lives and livelihoods in Myanmar and has highlighted the need for international fashion brands to question whether sourcing from Myanmar remains viable. It has become increasingly difficult to freely interview citizens in Myanmar and there is limited information on how garment workers and their families are surviving under military rule and uncertain economic futures.
This report - ‘Stitching together a future - Myanmar’s garment workers fight for their lives against COVID-19 and a military coup’ - is authored by BHRIGHT’s Sara Tödt and CARE International. It presents unique data on the experiences of garment workers in Myanmar during a time of crisis and change. It depicts the dire impact of the military coup on garment workers, their families and their livelihoods, compounding the already severe effects of the global economic recession resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic. The report outlines what garment workers need from international stakeholders at this time of crisis and suggests actions that garment brands, as well as unions and non-government organizations (NGOs), can take to support them.
