The case was filed on Tuesday at the court, which accepted the case and immediately heard victim testimony, said Preeda Tongchumnum, another lawyer on the case, who also works with the Solidarity Center, a U.S.-based worker rights organization. Also ran in: The Irrawaddy (Myanmar)
Factories give employees a travel allowance of $7, but they often end up spending more on a ragtag band of owner-operator driving services. “For them [the drivers], the more people you get on, the more profit you get,” says William Conklin, country director for international labor rights NGO Solidarity Center. “They’re not concerned about safety, they’re concerned about making ends meet.”
“A study by Rutgers, the AFL-CIO and the Solidarity Center indicates there is a direct link between growing income inequality and declining unionization. Equalizing benefits of union membership is more substantial for women.”
While local factory owners and foreign buyers engage in disputes, workers suffer, said Alonzo Suson, director of Solidarity Center programs in Bangladesh. “A lot remains to be done. We need the political will of the government.”
“For international donors seeking to protect rights throughout supply chains and beyond, meaningful support is required for building strong country-level institutions—from government agencies and judicial systems to trade unions—capable of advancing justice across borders,” said the Solidarity Center’s Sonia Mistry.
“With a more democratic government coming to power, Burma can and should set conditionalities on IFI agreements to ensure civil society voice and protection of environmental, labor and indigenous peoples’ rights,” said Solidarity Center Director of Asia Programs Tim Ryan.