Mizzima.com-Aug 2
The International Labor Organization (ILO) says that Myanmar is still deeply affected by job losses 18 months after the February 2021 coup and two and a half years since the start of the COVID 19 pandemic. The comments were made in an ILO briefing on Myanmar released on 1 August 2022. According to the ILO in the first half of 2022, labor productivity contracted a further 2 per cent, adding to an 8 per cent contraction in 2021, reversing the strong gains that had been made in years prior to the military takeover. The quality of jobs is under serious strain. Labor conditions are deteriorating for many workers with serious violations of labor rights as referred to in decisions of the ILO Committee on Freedom of Association, ILO Governing Body and in the International Labor Conference Resolution of 2021. The situation has taken a toll on enterprises and workers in key sectors. In the garment industry, evidence points to an increase in casual or daily labor, irregular working hours and workers receiving lower pay. ILO research also shows that more widely, entitlements such as severance pay when workers’ jobs are terminated are also often not granted.
In agriculture, real incomes of farmers have been squeezed by rising import prices of key inputs including fertilizer, fuel and livestock feed. The recovery in tourism and hospitality has been limited through the first part of the year. The ILO estimates that 1.1 million fewer women and men are employed compared to 2020, which indicates a small recovery in jobs in the first half of 2022. However, employment remains well below 2020 levels while the quality of jobs is deteriorating. Read more at:
https://www.mizzima.com/article/ilo-myanmar-still-deeply-affected-job-losses
