The Confederation of Trade Unions, Myanmar (CTUM), formerly known as the Federation of Trade Unions of Burma (FTUB), is a

trade union A trade union (British English) or labor union (American English), often simply referred to as a union, is an organization of workers whose purpose is to maintain or improve the conditions of their employment, such as attaining better wages ...

Myanmar Myanmar, officially the Republic of the Union of Myanmar; and also referred to as Burma (the official English name until 1989), is a country in northwest Southeast Asia. It is the largest country by area in Mainland Southeast Asia and has ...

(Burma). As of 2018, CTUM had 65,002 members, ahead of the Agriculture and Farmers Federation of Myanmar and the Myanmar Industries Craft and Services – Trade Unions Federation.

History

Following the

1962 Burmese coup d'état The 1962 Burmese coup d'état marked the beginning of one-party rule in Burma (Myanmar) and the political dominance of the military in Burmese politics. In the 2 March 1962 coup, the military replaced the civilian AFPFL-government headed ...

, trade unions were suspended from 1962 to 1988. During the

8888 Uprising The 8888 Uprising, also known as the People Power Uprising and the 1988 Uprising, was a series of nationwide protests, marches, and riots in Burma (present-day Myanmar) that peaked in August 1988. Key events occurred on 8 August 1988 and ther ...

, protesting committees demanded the right to organise trade unions without political interference. In September 1998, labour activists re-formed a national trade union movement in Rangoon (present-day

Yangon Yangon, formerly romanized as Rangoon, is the capital of the Yangon Region and the largest city of Myanmar. Yangon was the List of capitals of Myanmar, capital of Myanmar until 2005 and served as such until 2006, when the State Peace and Dev ...

). In 1991, the coalition of affiliated unions formed the Federation of Trade Unions of Burma (FTUB) as an underground labour movement. Until the Myanmar political reforms that began in 2011, the FTUB operated as a clandestine network. In 1998, Myo Aung Thant, an FTUB executive committee member, was sentenced to life imprisonment for labour organization activities within Myanmar. In 2003, three members of the FTUB, Nai Min Kyi, Yae Myint, and Naing Yatha, were sentenced to death for

high treason Treason is the crime of attacking a state authority to which one owes allegiance. This typically includes acts such as participating in a war against one's native country, attempting to overthrow its government, spying on its military, its d ...

. The International Centre for Trade Union Rights reported that: "The ostensible reasons for their sentences were that they had attended FTUB training on the Myanmar–Thailand border, were relaying information on forced labour to the

International Labour Organization The International Labour Organization (ILO) is a United Nations agency whose mandate is to advance social and economic justice by setting international labour standards. Founded in October 1919 under the League of Nations, it is one of the firs ...

, and had published an article in a Burmese magazine which uncovered corruption in the national football league." In October 2011, the Labour Organisation Law was passed, establishing the right of workers to establish labour unions. In March 2012, the Settlement of Labour Dispute Law was passed, establishing mechanisms to arbitrate labour disputes. In 2012, FTUM leaders returned from exile to Myanmar. In 2014, the union was renamed as the Confederation of Trade Unions, Myanmar (CTUM). In July 2015, Myanmar's Ministry of Labour, Employment and Social Security officially registered CTUM as a trade union.

Affiliations

The CTUM is affiliated with the

International Trade Union Confederation The International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC; ; ; ) is the world's largest trade union federation. History The federation was formed on 1 November 2006 out of the merger of the International Confederation of Free Trade Unions (ICFTU) a ...

(ITUC). In 2016, the CTUM cited 650 affiliated unions across multiple industries.

References

External links

* * National federations of trade unions Trade unions in Myanmar International Trade Union Confederation Trade unions established in 1991 1991 establishments in Myanmar {{Asia-trade-union-stub