JVC Manufacturing Malaysia, Selangor
Mr. Toshiya Ogata: ogata-toshiya@jvc-victor.jp
Mr. David Gifford: dgifford@jvc-victor.jp
Amsterdam, 8 October 2010.
Dear Mr Toshiya Ogata, Mr. David Gifford,
On behalf of the GoodElectronics Network I am writing to express my concerns over the fate of
Burmese migrant workers working at JVC Manufacturing, Selangor, Malaysia.
In case you are not the right persons to address within JVC about this matter, may I kindly request you
to forward this letter to your designated colleagues. Thank you.
Asian and international labour groups are sounding the alarm over the dreaded deportation of Burmese
workers who are working with JVC Manufacturing Malaysia, in Selangor. The 23 women concerned
are employed by Fast Link Trans agency. Organisations including the Workers Rights Consortium, the
Malaysian Trade Union Congress (MTUC) and the Burma Campaign Malaysia (BCM) fear that 16
women may be deported at a very short notice, while the permits of another seven women may be
terminated in the coming 2-3 months.
According to my information, the concerned Burmese workers lodged a complaint at the Malaysian
Labour Department (Subang Jaya office) on 21 July 2010, demanding the return of monies wrongly
deducted from their wages, the payment of overdue wages, and the return of their passports which
were held by their employer.
Labour groups argue that the early termination and/or non-renewal by JVC of the one-year contracts
of the women concerned can reasonably be seen as a retaliation of the company against workers who
are claiming their legal rights. The case of the Burmese women workers at the Labour Department is
currently pending. Termination of their contracts and repatriation to Burma will prevent them from
pursing their legal claims. JVC and Fast Link Trans are urged to respect due legal process.
The situation of the Burmese women workers at JVC Malaysia does not stand alone. Reportedly, JVC
employs approximately 800 migrant workers on a total of 1,200 workers. Migrant workers are
recruited from several countries, including Burma, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Vietnam and Indonesia. On 25
August, 30 JVC workers from Sri Lanka were summarily dismissed, allegedly in retaliation for their
demand to be paid the salary that was promised to them when recruited. So far, eight women of this
group were repatriated without receiving any compensation for their untimely dismissal.
GoodElectronics is supportive of the struggle of Asian and international labour groups on behalf of
these migrant workers. Indirectly employed migrant women workers have a most precarious position,
on the labour market as well as in the host country’s society. As a responsible employer JVC should
live up to internationally agreed labour standards and especially protect vulnerable workers.
GoodElectronics will post news items about the situation at JVC Malaysia on its website.
GoodElectronics is an international network for human rights and sustainability in the global
electronics supply chain.
Looking forward to hearing from you,
Sincerely,
Pauline Overeem
Pauline Overeem
Network Coordinator
GoodElectronics
International Network on Human Rights & Sustainability in Electronics
Sarphatistraat 30
1018 GL Amsterdam
The Netherlands
T: +31(0) 20 639 12 91
M: +31(0)6 413 443 85
p.overeem@goodelectronics.org
skype: pauline.overeem
www.goodelectronics.org
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