Trade Union Reform For workers' rights and interests NEWSLETTER PUBLISHED BY THE INSTITUTE OF WORKERS AND TRADE UNION UNDER COOP- ERATION FRAMEWORK BETWEEN THE VIETNAM GENERAL CONFEDERATION No.21 OF LABOUR AND THE (ILO) NIRF/JAPAN PROJECT 4nd Quarter of 2019 NEW PROVISIONS IN THE LABOUR CODE (REVISED) BBT 2019 KINDERGARTEN TEACHERS HAVING (Page 2-5) NEGOTIATED AND CONCLUDED A COLLECTIVE BARGAINING AGREEMENT FOR THE FIRST TIME (Page 12-13) • Trade Union Law Revision – Perspective of An Industrial Relations Specialist (Page 6-7) • A multi-employer collective bargaining agreement (ME CBA) among wood processing enterprises concluded in Tam Phuoc Industrial Zone (IZ), Bien Hoa, Dong Nai (Page 8-9) • Reinforcing Cyclo Syndicate and establishing Tourist Boat Syndicate to better protect benefits of informal workers (Page 10-11) • Multi-employer Bargaining Agreements: Towards a High-road Approach (Page 14-17) NEWS • Welfare for workers and responsibilities of the state and trade unions (Page 18-20) • Training on Methodology for Industrial Relations researches in Viet Nam in the new situation (Page 21-23) The Highlights NEW PROVISIONS IN THE LABOUR CODE (REVISED) 2019 Dr. Vu Minh Tien Director, Institute for Workers and Trade Union – Vietnam General Confederation of Labour The Labour Code (Revised), comprising of 17 Chapters and 220 Articles, was adopted by the National Assembly on 20 November 2019 and will come into force on 1 January 2021. The Code, replacing the Labour Code (Revised) in 2012, has introduced many new provisions towards better protection of rights and responsibilities of target stakeholders, contributing to the building of stable, harmonious and progressive industrial relations in Viet Nam in its market economy and deeper international integration. NEW PROVISIONS TARGETTING WORKERS 1. Trade Union rights and workers’ representative orga- 2. Probation (Article 24 – Article 27) nizations (WROs) at the grassroots level (Article 170 – Provisions on probation offer flexible arrangements to be Article 177) introduced in the contract: Trade Union rights and regulations on WROs at the grass- • Probation can be stipulated either as a separate contract roots level. or as an integral part in the working contract. During the • Workers have the rights to establish, join and partici- probation, either of the parties has the rights to unilateral- pate in activities by grassroots-level WROs, including: ly terminate the probation contract or the working • Those affiliated to Viet Nam Trade Union, or contract without any prior notice and compensation. • WROs at the enterprises (who shall, after due course of establishment, reserve the right to regis- • A provision on probationary period has been introduced, ter into Viet Nam Trade Union). which stipulates that the probation shall not exceed 180 • All WROs shall have equal rights and obligations in days for positions of enterprise executive prescribed in protection of workers’ legitimate rights and interests in the Law on Enterprises and the Law on the Use and industrial relations. Management of state investment in the enterprises. BULLETIN EDITED BY THE INSTITUTE EDITORIAL GROUP CONTACT ADDRESS OF WORKERS AND TRADE UNION VU MANH TIEM INSTITUTE OF WORKERS AND TRADE UNION NO. 21, DEC., 2019 NGUYEN DUY VU 82 Tran Hung Dao street, Hoan Kiem, Hanoi DUONG QUOC HAI Tel: +84 24 39421516 / Fax: +84 24 39421516 PRODUCERS EDITOR-IN-CHIEF NHAC PHAN LINH Email: [email protected] VU MINH TIEN TA THI BICH LIEN NGUYEN MANH THANG License for publication No. 06/GP-XBBT issued on January 29, 2019 by Authority of Press, DEPUTY CHIEF EDITOR NGUYEN VINH QUANG PHAM THU LAN MAI THI THU Ministry of Information and Communications LE THI HUYEN TRANG printed by AS Design, JSC., 2 Trade Union Reform ME CBA • Specific regulations as stipulated by the Government WORKING for certain jobs of certain characteristics CONTRACT (5) Clear stipulation of 7 cases when workers have the Pay, Wages, rights to unilaterally terminate working contract without Supervisionand prior notice, except for cases where other mutual agree- Management ments are made by the parties in Article 35. (6) Reasonable regulations on period of time and respon- sibilities to settle termination of contract: • Period of settlement has increased from 7 to 14 days so that both parties shall make full payment for sever- ance allowance • Regulations on new responsibility of employers to complete the period of social insurance contribution to workers, and to provide copies of documents related to the working duration of the workers upon workers’ request and willingness to pay for copy and postal services related. 3. Working contract 4. Wage Flexibility in contract arrangement, implementation and Flexibility and ownership of industrial relations actors in termination, in respect of the principles of contract in the determining wages increased through social dialogue market economy. and collective bargaining. (1) Increasing capacity to identify practical forms of indus- (1) Minimum wage: The State only regulates minimum trial relations (Article 3 – Point 1) by clarifying that any wage level (stipulated in Article 90) form of contract, irrespective of its title, shall be (2) Wage scale, payroll and labour productivity norms: regarded as a working contract if it includes: employers are active and have the rights to determine • A work arranged on mutual agreements wage scale, payroll and labour productivity norms • Pay for the work done; upon discussions with worker representatives at the • Supervision and management by employers workplace, and shall publicize at the workplace before (2) Working contract allowed to be concluded electronical- implementation (stipulated in Article 93) ly, with equal value as those concluded in written (3) Protection of workers’ wage: in each of the pay, the manner (Article 14 Point 1) employer shall provide the employee with a pay slip (3) Seasonal contract and piecework contract are now specifying the salary, overtime pay, nightshift pay and removed. There are 2 types of working contracts deductions (if any). remained as stipulated in Article 20 Point 1: 5. Working hours and rest periods • Indefinite term contract Flexibility and harmonization on working hours and rest • Definite term contract (not exceeding 36 months) periods (4) Workers now have the right to unilaterally terminate (1) Over time working hours: working contract (without having to reason), provided • Overtime working hour frame has extended from 30 that the workers notice the employers in advance, as hours to 40 hours per month stipulated in Article 35 Point 1, within • In certain circumstances, it is allowed that workers • 45 days for those under indefinite term contract can work overtime from 200 hours to 300 hours. • 30 days for those under definite term contract from 12 (2) Holidays: months to 36 months • National Day Holiday is extended to 2 days off with one • 3 days for those under definite term contract of under more day either preceding or following the Day as 12 months appropriate. For Workers’ Rights and Interests 3 Retirement Age Retirement Age by current law by the new law 6. Retirement Age (Article 169) 60 55 62 60 • The rights to early retirements are applied, with a maxi- mum of 5 years beforehand to the retirement age Regular workers stipulated in Clause 2 of Article 169, for workers suffering from work capacity reduction, working in toxic and precarious environments or highly disadvan- 55 50 57 55 taged areas. • The rights to extended retirement age by up to a maxi- Workers working in hazardous environments mum of 5 years are applied to skilled employees or employees in certain special cases. 65 60 67 65 Roadmap from 2021 Skilled workers 2021 2022 2023 2024 2025 2026 2027 2028 2029 2030 2035 60 years 60 years 60 years 61 years 61 years 61 years 61 years 62 years 3 months 6 months 9 months 3 months 6 months 9 months 55 years 55 years 56 years 56 years 56 years 57 years 57 years 57 years 58 years 58 years 60 years 4 months 8 months 4 months 8 months 4 months 8 months 4 months From 2021, retirement age will increase by 3 months every year for male workers and by 4 months every year for female workers until the retirement age for men reach 62 (in 2028) and women 60 (in 2035) 7. Regulations related to female workers and gender Article 149) equality (Article 135 to Article 142) • Clear definition of old-aged workers: One will be consid- Regulations on protection for pregnant and nursing ered an old-aged worker when one continues to work female workers, as well as facilitation and support mecha- after the prescribed retirement age in normal working nism for female worker to exercise their rights, are legal- condition (thereby, those male workers aging higher ized with a minimization of limitations, specifically: than 62 and female higher than 60) (1) Delegating the rights to decide whether they wish to • Old-aged workers have the rights to sign multiple work on job positions harmful to child-bearing and definite-term working contracts parenting functions for female workers • Old-aged workers have the rights to negotiate with (2) Delegating the rights to decide whether they wish to employers on shortened daily working hours or on appli- work on night shifts, undertake out-of-site missions or cations of part-time working hours. overtime work when female workers are nursing 10. Foreign workers working in Viet Nam less-than-12-month children. • Clear definition of old-aged workers: One will be consid- (3) Female workers under maternity leave can negotiate