Tracy Breneman Pennas
Labor & Dispute Resolution Resources: VIETNAM

The national emblem of the Socialist Repubfic of Vietnam is circular in shape; in the middle of a red background is a fivepointed gold star framed by rice ears below which is half a cogwheel and the inscription: Socialist Republic of Vietnam.  The rounded shape on red background with Five point Star in the middle symbolizes the revolutionary history of the Nation and the bright future of the Country. The rice ears surrounding the Emblem symbolizes the agriculture and the cogwheel symbolizes industry.  xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

ILO Sub-regional Office for East Asia Vietnam (.pdf file) Ministry of Labour, War Invalids and Social Affairs (MOLISA)    In accordance with the Vietnamese Government's permission and the ILO's approval, the National OS Centre (MOLISA) was established in 1989, and from 1992 the National Institute of Labour Protection of Vietnam General Confederation of Labour (VGCL) became a Collaborative OS Centre and regularly contacts and meets its obligation in information exchange with OS/ILO Geneva. NATLEX: Vietnam Vietnam Labour Codes LEGISLATION Labor Code (took effect 1 January 1995, revised in 2002) Chapter IV: Labor Contract Chapter XIII: Trade Union Chapter XIV: Settlement of Labor Disputes (individual and collective) Labor Protection Ordinance Constitution of 1999  (through the Embassy of the S.R.V. in the US) Trade-Union Law GOVERNMENT Communist Party of Vietnam  (in English) National Assembly  (in English) Embassy of the S.R. of Vietnam in the US Government overview Communist Party The Ministry of Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs (MOLISA) (in English) Department of Labour and Economic Policies The Ministry's Inspectorate Ministry of Trade  (in English) Ministry of Industry  (in English) Ministry of Health Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry  ("English" takes us to the Forum) Vietnam International Arbitration Centre at the Chamber of Commerce and Industry Statute of the VIAC (1993 ordinance) Ordinance for Procedure of Economic Disputes Summary Directorate for Standards and Quality Contact List for All Ministries National Institute of Labour Protection Vietnam General Confederation of Labor JUDICIAL Ministry of Justice People's Court Labor Court ILO description of courts The Vietnamese judiciary consists of the Supreme People's Court, the local people's courts, military tribunals, and other tribunals established by law. Each district throughout the country has a district people's court, which serves as the court of first instance for most domestic, civil, and criminal cases. Each province has a Provincial People's Court, which serves as the appellate forum for district court cases, as well as courts of first instance for other cases. The SPC is the highest court of appeal and review. The Ministry of Justice administers most district and provincial courts, and the National Assembly administers the SPC. The judiciary also includes military tribunals, economic courts, labor courts, and administrative courts that resolve disputes in those specialized fields. Administrative courts deal with complaints by citizens about official abuse and corruption. The economic and administrative courts have addressed few cases since their creation in 1994 and 1995, respectively. Local mass organizations, such as those under the Fatherland Front, are empowered to deal with minor breaches of law or disputes. In addition the CPV and Government have set up special committees to help resolve local disputes. (source) DISPUTE RESOLUTION PROCESS: Individual 1.  local labor reconcliation council or labour conciliator of the labour office in the district, township or town in a province (district), or if no council exists, 2.  The People's Court (district)  (per the Labor Code, chapter XIV, section I) Labour Conciliation Council & further information Labour Arbitration Council & further information RESOURCES UNDP project for effective implementation of the Labour Code Southeast Asia Research Center (SEARC)  Hong Kong Database on Labor Law "Labour Relations and Regulation in Vietnam: Theory and Practice," 2003. Li Qi, Bill Taylor, Stephen Frost.  (includes a section on dispute resolution, pp.23-27) Human Rights Watch: Vietnam Human Rights Watch report, 11/10/2000 - includes information on strikes and repression "Vietnam’s Labor Rights Regime: An Assessment" (Pennyhill Press, 2002) Global Standards "Labor Rights" by Jeff Ballinger (set up the Legal Assistance for Industrial Dispute Settlement (LAIDS) funded by the Jakarta office of USAID) US-Vietnam Trade Council: US Department of State Human Rights Report, Labor Subsections, February 25, 2000.  Section 6 Worker Rights, The Right of Association World Bank: Vietnam UNDP: Vietnam Mekong Research University of California- Vietnam Resources Vietgate: NGOs in Vietnam Library of Congress Country study: Vietnam Law Library Legal Guides: Vietnam Law Library Reading Room Center for Law and Global Justice Vietnam Law Database  (e-mailed asking for English links) Vietnam Legal InfoCenter  (e-mailed asking for English links) Categories of Vietnam law The full text of the amendments to Vietnam's Labor Code, which took effect from January 2003, is now available in an English translation provided by the law firm Phillips Fox.  This is available online courtesy of the US Vietnam Trade Council web site at the following location:  Vietnam Labor Code Amendments, April 2002 (pdf format) :    MEDIA & CURRENT EVENTS Labor Newspaper Viet Forum Vietnam Net Voice of Vietnam People's Daily Saigon Times Vietnam Economic Times Vietnam News Agency  Vietnam Television Radio The Voice of Vietnam Nhan Dan Daily   People's Army Daily   Viet Nam News Vietnam Investment Review A window to Vietnam   Que huong Magazine OtherInstituto L ricano das Nações Unidas para Prevenção do Dpppelito e Tratamento do Delinquente (ILANUD) Latin e