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THE MINISTRY OF LABOR, WAR INVALIDS AND
SOCIAL AFFAIRS
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SOCIALIST REPUBLIC OF VIET NAM
Independence - Freedom – Happiness
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No.
3/LDTBXH-TT
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Hanoi, January 13,1997
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CIRCULAR
GUIDING
THE IMPLEMENTATION OF A NUMBER OF ARTICLES OF DECREE No.23-CP OF APRIL 18, 1996
OF THE GOVERNMENT WITH SPECIFIC STIPULATIONS ABOUT WOMEN LABOR
In execution of Decree No.23-CP
of April 18, 1996 of the Government detailing and guiding the implementation of
a number of Articles of the Labor Code with specific stipulations about women
labor, after consulting the Vietnam Generation Confederation of Labor and a
number of concerned Ministries and branches, the Ministry of Labor, War
Invalids and Social Affairs hereby provides the following guidance for the
implementation of a number of Articles of Decree No.23-CP of April 18, 1996 of
the Government:
I. OBJECTS AND SCOPE OF REGULATION:
The objects and scope of
regulation shall comply with Article 1 of Decree No.23-CP of April 18, 1996.
This Circular elaborates on the following points concerning the objects:
1. A woman laborer at least 15
full years old who is capable of working shall sign a labor contract;
A girl under 15 years of age
working in a number of trades and jobs shall comply with the stipulations of
the Ministry of Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs.
2. The employers of women labor
are the General Directors or Directors of enterprises of all economic sectors,
or persons empowered in writing by the General Directors or Directors; the
Heads of agencies or organizations, or the persons empowered in writing by them
in accordance with the legislation on the delegation of powers.
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1. Working regimes:
The working regimes of women
laborers shall conform with the stipulations of Article 3 of Decree No.23-CP of
April 18, 1996 of the Government. They comprise the following:
- The flexible working regime
which is the assignment and use of women laborers according to a time schedule
(starting and ending times) different from the time schedule commonly applied
at the agency or unit.
- The regime of incomplete
workday is the use of women laborers for a lesser number of working hours in a
day than commonly applied at the agency or unit.
- The regime of incomplete
working week is the use of women laborers for a lesser number of days in a week
than commonly applied at the agency or unit.
- The regime of at-home work is the
assignment of jobs to be done at home (the family) by a woman laborer, provided
this does not affect the requirements of production and business. This form of
women’s labor use shall benefit both the laborer and the employer.
The following principles should
be taken into account by the enterprise when applying the aforesaid working
regime to women laborers:
2. Principles of application:
-The enterprise shall consider
and determine what working regime best suits women’s labor in order to apply it
in the process of production and business on the principle of mutual consent
and mutual benefit, provided it meets the requirements of production and
business and the legitimate aspiration of the women laborers, but in no case
should the working time exceed 8 hours in a day and 48 hours in a week.
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- The flexible working regime
must not be misused to assign and use women’s labor for night-shift work in
contravention of the current legislation on labor.
- The income of the woman
laborer who is assigned jobs under the aforesaid regime must conform with the
written agreement between the woman laborer and the employer.
3. Process of implementation:
a/ The enterprise shall discuss
with the trade union to determine the jobs and the forms and organization of
the work and submit them to the laborers’ discussion. What has been agreed upon
concerning the jobs and forms of work shall be recorded in the collective labor
bargain;
b/ The enterprise shall make
arrangements for the women laborers to register for the jobs already written in
the collective labor bargain in conformity with the form of work of their
choice;
c/ Together with the trade union
the enterprise shall consider and arrange a suitable time-table for each woman
laborer in the following priority order: women three months or more with child;
women having to nurse their babies under 12 months old; women with frail health
as recognized by a polyclinic doctor; women with difficult family situation,
etc.
III.- ON TRAINING WOMEN LABORERS IN RESERVE OCCUPATIONS
A reserve occupation is an
occupation different from the one a woman laborer is practicing which shall be
used when she can no longer continue this job until she reaches retirement age
as prescribed by State regulations.
1. Determining reserve occupations for women laborers:
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2. Organizing training women labor in reserve occupations
Basing itself on the number of
women laborers who need to train in reserve occupations, the enterprise should
pay adequate attention to their job-training desire in order to draw up a plan
for training in reserve occupations. Depending on the specific conditions of
the enterprise, it may organize the training itself or sign training contracts
with job training centers to carry out this plan.
IV.- DETERMINING WHAT ENTERPRISES NEED A LARGE WOMEN WORKFORCE:
To determine that an enterprise
has the necessary conditions to use a large women workforce as stipulated in
Article 5 of Decree No.23-CP of April 18, 1996 of the Government the following
factors must be taken into account:
1. To determine the number of
laborers on the payroll of the enterprise each month in order to calculate the
average for the whole year at the time of the elaboration of the annual plan.
2. On the basis of the workforce
receiving the average wage in the whole year, the enterprise shall calculate
the absolute as well as relative number of women laborers and decide whether it
is or is not an enterprise requiring a large women workforce.
3. An enterprise which gathers
all the above factors shall compile a dossier (2 sets) and send it to the
Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs Service in November each year. Basing
itself on this dossier, the Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs Service
shall conclude that an enterprise qualifies to be an enterprise using a large
women workforce and shall remit one set to the enterprise (the other shall be
kept at the Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs Service) (see Form No.5
attached to this Circular).
4. The dossier applying for
recognition as an enterprise using a large women workforce shall comprise:
- A written official application
of the enterprise (Form No.4 attached to this Circular);
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V.- PREFERENTIAL TREATMENT OF AN ENTERPRISE USING A LARGE WOMEN WORKFORCE
Pursuant to the policy of
preferential treatment of the enterprises using a large women workforce
stipulated in Article 6 of Decree No.23-CP of April 18, 1996 of the Government,
the Ministry provides the following guidance:
1. The policy of granting low interest loans from the National Fund for
Employment:
a/ To quality for capital borrowing, the enterprise must meet the
following conditions:
- It is an enterprise
using a large women workforce as defined in Section IV of this Circular;
- The enterprise is meeting with
difficulties and entitled to special assistance by decision of the Prime
Minister at the proposal of the parent Ministry, the State corporation, the
People’s Committee of the province or city directly under the Central Government;
- The enterprise can present a
plan to demonstrate the efficiency of the use of the loan, the capability for
debt payment and job procurement for its women workforce.
b/ Mode of implementation:
The enterprise shall observe the
current regulations on borrowing capital at low interest rates from the
National Fund for Employment.
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a/ To qualify for consideration for package non-refund support, the
enterprise must meet the following conditions:
- It is an enterprise using a
large women workforce defined in Section IV of this Circular;
- It must present a plan of
transferring the women laborers from places with harmful working conditions and
other jobs where women labor is prohibited as defined in the Inter-ministerial
Circular No.03/TT-LB of January 28, 1994 of the Ministry of Labor, War Invalids
and Social Affairs and the Ministry of Health to other jobs which suit their
health and ensure their function of procreating and raising their children.
- It is an enterprise which
meets financial difficulties because its self-procured capital is not enough to
implement this plan.
b/ Method of implementation:
The enterprise shall elaborate a
plan according to the current process on the elaboration of a plan to apply for
capital borrowing at low interest rate from the National Fund for Employment.
VI.- BASIS TO CONSIDER FOR TAX REDUCTION
The consideration for tax
reduction according to Article 7 of Decree No.23-CP of April 18, 1996 of the
Government shall be effected as directed by the Ministry of Finance. This
Circular specifies the usual extra costs due to the use of women workforce:
1. The 60-minute break per day
during the period of nursing a child under twelve months old multiplied by the
number of workdays of the women laborers entitled to such a regime and
converted into money equivalent;
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3. Purchase of equipment and
appliances for the crèches and pre-school classes organized by the enterprise;
4. The thirty-minute break for
sanitation of women laborers multiplied by the number of workdays of the women
laborers entitled to this regime and converted into money equivalent;
5. One hour of working time less
per day for pregnant women laborers up to the 7th month multiplied by the
number of workdays for women laborers entitled to this regime and converted
into money equivalent;
6. Allowance to women laborers
after childbirth;
7. Hiring teachers to open a
crèche or pre-school class organized by the enterprise;
8. Purchase of additional labor
protection equipment (besides that under the common regime) to suit the working
conditions of women laborers;
9. Building separate bathrooms and
toilets for women laborers;
10. Organizing health checks for
women laborers (periodically once a year);
11. Organizing anniversaries of
women.
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In the transfer of women labor
from the jobs banned to women labor to other and suitable jobs under Article 11
of Decree No.23-CP of April 18, 1996 of the Government the enterprise shall
have to undertake the following:
1. To inventorize and classify
the women laborers who are doing jobs banned to women labor (see Form No.3
attached to this Circular).
2. To draw up a plan to move
this women workforce to other and suitable jobs.
In case the enterprise is
meeting with financial difficulties and is qualified for the policy of package financial
support from the National Fund for Employment, the provisions in Clause 2,
Section V of this Circular shall apply.
3. While drawing up its plan,
the enterprise must carry out immediately a number of measures stipulated in
Inter-ministerial Circular No.03/TT-LB of January 28,1994 of the Ministry of
Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs and the Ministry of Health in order to
arrange an appropriate work timetable for the women laborers so that they might
learn a trade and familiarize themselves with the new job.
VIII.- ORGANIZATION OF IMPLEMENTATION
1. The Ministries and branches
shall organize and direct the implementation of this Circular for the
enterprises directly under their management; they should regularly urge and
inspect the implementation of the policies and regimes regarding women labor by
the director of the enterprise; and carry out fully the reporting regime as
prescribed by the Ministry of Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs (see Forms
No.2 and 3 attached to this Circular).
2. The People’s Committees of
the provinces and cities directly under the Central Government shall direct the
concerned Commissions and branches including the Labor, War Invalids and Social
Affairs Service which is the permanent agency to help the People’s Committee in
guiding the enterprises located on their territories to implement this
Circular.
3. The Labor, War Invalids and
Social Affairs Service shall draw up a plan of action and submit it to the
People’s Committee of the province and city and organize the implementation of
this plan. At the same time it shall have to observe the regime of timely
reporting to the Ministry of Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs.
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5. In the process of its
implementation, should any problem arise, the ministries, branches and
localities are requested to report in time to the Ministry of Labor, War
Invalids and Social Affairs for consideration and settlement.
THE MINISTER OF LABOR, WAR INVALIDS AND
SOCIAL AFFAIRS
Tran Dinh Hoan