Vietnam’s future of work is a choice and the country is showing what that choice will be, by upskilling its workforce, extending coverage of social protection and modernizing its industrial relations institutions.

These messages have been confirmed at the 2019 Vietnam Labour Forum in Hanoi on 27 November. 

The forum, expected to be the debut of regular bi-annual events, is co-organized by the International Labour Organization (ILO) and the Ministry of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs (MOLISA) as part of the ILO Centenary year. 

“Today’s world of work is going through accelerated and disruptive changes, affecting livelihoods of millions of working women and men, employers and workers alike,” said ILO Vietnam Director, Chang-Hee Lee. He named the key change factors, including technological innovation represented by the Industrial Revolution 4.0, increasingly interconnected global trade system, aging population and climate change. 

“How to build a better future of work in this transformative era, by grasping the opportunities it offers and preparing to face the rising challenges, is a critical question of our time,” he said.

In that context, the ILO’s historic Centenary Declaration adopted in June 2019 called for human-centred future of work and emphasized that future is not something to be imposed on us, but a choice to be made by Governments, workers and employers. 

Vietnam has been a success story with sustained high growth over the past decade despite turbulent global environment, as a result of the country’s strategic choice for economic development through deeper global integration, combined with domestic reforms. 

“To realize its ambition of becoming an upper middle income country by 2030, Vietnam needs to make social upgrading in tandem with economic upgrading,” said the head of ILO Vietnam. “Fortunately the country is taking bold and right steps by upskilling its workforce, by extending coverage of social protection, and by modernizing its industrial relations institutions.” 

According to MOLISA Vice Minister Lê Văn Thanh, the adoption of the revised Labour Code is a milestone of Vietnam in modernizing its labour laws in line with a socialist-oriented market economy and international integration. The newly-adopted Labour Code is better aligned with the ILO’s fundamental conventions, including the remaining two conventions (on freedom of association and forced labour) Vietnam plans to ratify in the coming years. 

The recent High Level Conference on Skilling up Vietnam illustrated the commitment to skills development at the highest levels of Government, and set a new policy direction for a better future of work through higher productivity based on nationwide upskilling and on better coordination between demand and supply for skills.  

The ambitious master plan for social insurance and assistance reform based on the Party Resolution No 28-NQ/TW in 2018 has paved the ways for universal social protection coverage. 

“I believe ensuring decent work for all, through progresses on upskilling, universal social protection and effective industrial relations should be an integral part of the next Social Economic Development Strategy and Plan which Vietnam is finalizing, because it will be a main social policy driver for economic upgrading,” said the head of ILO Vietnam. “I believe Vietnam is on the right track for sustainable and inclusive growth on its way to high middle income country.”./.