ILO and Vietnam join forces to promote international labour standards

The document for 2021-2030 was signed on May 20 in Hanoi by representatives of ILO Vietnam and the MoLISA

Both sides agreed to work together to promote the ratification and implementation of international labour standards in Vietnam through a cooperation framework between the Ministry of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs (MoLISA) and ILO Vietnam and ensure the participation of representatives of workers and employers in the entire process.

The cooperation includes raising awareness of the international labour standards, applying the ILO Conventions ratified by Vietnam to Vietnamese laws, promoting the national capacity to implement and report the implementation of the ratified conventions, monitoring the implementation, and developing proposals for ratifying further ILO conventions.

“The signing of the MoU is a significant first step marking a new development period in the cooperation between MoLISA and ILO Vietnam in promoting international labour standards and improving the national legal system on labour. It also affirms Vietnam’s deepening international integration as the world is witnessing lots of changes, including those in labour and employment,” said MoLISA Minister Dao Ngoc Dung at the signing ceremony.

He described the move as a significant first step to promote international labour standards and improve the national labour legal system in the 2021-2030 period.

Chang-Hee Lee, director of ILO Vietnam noted that the event shows Vietnam’s commitment to modernising its labour and social law in line with universal principles enshrined in the international labour standards of the ILO.

“If all goes as planned, Vietnam will become a leading country among the ASEAN member states in promoting international labour standards. I believe that it will lead to social upgrading which is required for Vietnam to move towards becoming an upper-middle-income country,” he said.

Vietnam has ratified 25 ILO conventions to date, including seven out of eight fundamental conventions covering the areas of collective bargaining, non-discrimination, child labour, and forced labour. According to the MoU, the country plans to ratify 15 more ILO conventions, including core Convention 87 on Freedom of Association and Protection of the Right to Organize, in accordance with the national needs and socio-economic conditions.

Since 1919, the ILO has maintained and developed a system of international labour standards aimed at setting out basic principles and rights at work. In today's globalised economy, international labour standards are an essential component in the international framework for ensuring that free trade comes with the protection of basic workers’ rights enshrined in the 1998 ILO Declaration on the Fundamental Principles and Rights at Work.

International labour standards are drawn up by the ILO constituents – governments, employers and workers in the form of conventions (or protocols) – which are legally binding international treaties once ratified by member states, or recommendations, which serve as non-binding guidelines.