Foreign workers slipping underneath the radar

According to Ho Chi Minh City’s Department of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs, the state body has issued 27,236 working permits  to foreign labourers, but only a half of them are in force.

According to the Labour Law, foreigners entering Vietnam for employment for a period of more than three months must hold a business visa and obtain a working permit.

Nevertheless, a recent survey done by Ho Chi Minh City Department of Labour,  Invalids and Social Affairs showed that 30 per cent of foreign workers were not in compliance with this regulation.
Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs Minister Pham Thi Hai Chuyen last week told the National Assembly there were 77,000 foreign labourers working in Vietnam.

But the departments of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs had issued working permits for 50,000 workers or 67 per cent of the total foreign labourers working in Vietnam, leaving 32 per cent are without a working permit.

The Labour Law regulates that foreign enterprise that need 500 unskilled workers must declare to the local authority before within 60 before hiring foreign unskilled workers or 30 days for less than 500 unskilled workers. If firms cannot recruit enough workers, they are allowed to bring foreign unskilled workers to Vietnam.

“However, even when the time limit is still valid, some foreign enterprises recruited foreign unskilled workers,” said Chuyen.

Foreign employees could be expelled from Vietnam for a certain period of time and employer who does not follow the foreign labour declaration regulation would be fined of a penalty of VND20 million ($957) to VND30 million ($1,436), according to Decree 47/2010/ND-CP.

Chuyen said: “The regulation is a gap and the penalty is small. We need to consider it to control the foreign labourers especially unskilled workers entering Vietnam for work,” said Chuyen.

According to Chuyen, amended Labour Law effective in May 2013 will have a section detailing hiring foreign labourer and fixing above  unreasonable gaps.