With support of the European Union and GIZ, SMART Myanmar has developed an educational smartphone app for industrial workers in Myanmar called “Shwe Job”. On International Workers’ Day, May 1st, SMART Myanmar celebrated the public launch of this app in the Google Play Store with local civil society organization, Thone Pann Hla, at the Sunday Café II in Hlaing Thar Yar Township. Approximately 120 garment workers joined the event.

Factory workers relax at the Sunday Cafe II during the launch event for Shwe Job on May 1st.

Factory workers relax at the Sunday Cafe II during the launch event for Shwe Job on May 1st.

About Shwe Job:

Shwe Job is an app created by SMART Myanmar to teach garment factory workers about good practices for occupational safety & health in the factory and to increase awareness and knowledge of the existing labour laws in Myanmar. This app uses a combination of stories, illustrations and voiceovers.
Shwe Job references Myanmar’s existing labour laws whenever possible, but also supplements in additional recommendations on occupational safety & health based on international standards and best practices. SMART Myanmar’s goal in creating this app is to create a useful and practical educational tool. The app is not meant to be comprehensive or authoritative, but rather is designed to teach and increase knowledge in a format which is approachable to factory workers.
Shwe Job also includes a Salary Calculator – another tool for workers to understand how their monthly salary is calculated.

“When we started working with Myanmar’s garment workers fewer than 1% owned smart phones. Now, over 90% do. This is an amazing shift in just 4 years. It is this incredible change that prompted us to create a teaching tool which can make full use of the latest and most relevant technologies.” – SMART Myanmar Team Leader Jacob A. Clere.

About SMART Myanmar:

SMART Myanmar is a project funded by the European Union and has been conducting training and capacity building programs on social and environmental issues with garment factories in Myanmar since 2013. The project actively supports and promotes sustainable consumption and production (SCP) of garments “Made in Myanmar” – a concept with emphasis on resource efficiency and social responsibility.

For more photos:
https://www.facebook.com/smartmyanmarproject

Download the Shwe Job app in the Google Play Store (Android phones only):
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.smart.myanmar.app&hl=en