The Shwe Padauk Fish Market in Hline Township, Yangon, receives and distributes freshwater products nationwide, employing more than 2,000 workers daily.
Every day, workers from surrounding townships, including Hline, Kyimyindine, Dala, Twantay, Insein, Hlinethaya, and Shwepyitha, come to the market to engage in loading, unloading, freezing, packing, transporting, and trading activities.
“At the Shwe Padauk Fish Market, a shop can operate efficiently only if it has between five and eight workers. We employ five general labourers, one broker, and two clerks. For someone who owns ten shops, the required workforce is much larger. Shop owners and workers are mutually dependent. When sales are good, workers earn more and business performs well. Conversely, when sales decline, both owners and workers experience lower incomes. Therefore, shop owners make every effort to retain their workers by looking after their livelihoods and ensuring their well-being. With more than 430 shops in the market, employment opportunities are provided to over 2,000 workers every day,” said U Aye Ko, Vice-Chairman of the Shwe Padauk Market Development Committee.
Spanning more than eight acres, the sprawling commercial facility comprises seven buildings housing 432 shops, as well as dedicated cold storage facilities. With each of the hundreds of wholesale stalls employing five to eight workers, the market consistently supports between 2,000 and 3,000 jobs daily. Daily wages fluctuate depending on the volume of fishery products arriving at the market. Labourers are paid a piece rate of K15 per viss. For example, if a stall processes 5,000 visses of fish in a day, an individual worker can earn around K15,000.
Standard daily earnings for market labourers typically range from K15,000 to K25,000, while specialized positions such as brokers and clerks receive fixed monthly salaries ranging from K500,000 to K700,000. At the Shwe Padauk Fish Market, workers receive a daily allowance of K10,000 from shop owners on days when no goods arrive. — Thitsa (MNA)/TH
