NEW DELHI: Tens of thousands of garment workers who were sacked as the coronavirus pandemic hit factory orders are owed millions of dollars in severance pay, with many struggling to feed their families as they wait, labor rights advocates said.

A study found 31 factories supplying clothes to leading global brands owed 40,000 laid-off workers about $40 million in severance pay to which they were entitled, the US-based Workers Rights Consortium (WRC) said.