Every Monday I get the newspaper (Myanmar Times English version) and some of the articles really do surprise me even after so many years here.

Yesterday I read that the employees of a couple of factories were on strike. They want more money (as is usual when there are strikes), but I could see the validity of their claims. OK, I haven't contacted anyone to hear the other side of the story but I can well imagine that (most of the ) facts were true.

The workers of one of the factories got salaries up to 50.000 ks a month (roughly $50). It was made up of 500 ks daily wage (can you imagine working a day for $0.50!), and then with a complex system of bonuses for overtime and so on, they could manage to get the $50. It means working every day from 8 am to 8 pm, and I mean EVERY day. So no weekends and so on.. If you want a day off or are sick, they cut your salary....

The owner didn't want to agree to the demands but wanted to give half of what was asked for (15.000 instead of 30.000), claiming that since there were so many employees, it was unaffordable... (over 1500 employees in a garment factory!).

How can this be possible in our day and time? People getting so little for what they do. It isn't like Myanmar is a very cheap country. 50.000 ks. will not buy someone much. Most families need to pool all income together to make ends meet. All, so we can have cheap clothes....  (or whatever else they produce in those factories).