YouPhim
01-10-2008, 08:11 AM
VietNamNet Bridge – On January 9, under the framework of the “Vietnam: A Rising Star” business conference, the Minister of Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs talked with 500 businesses about human resources, a hindrance to Vietnam’s current development.
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Foreign investors at the conference
Martil Gil, Cocacola Indochina General Director who has been working in Vietnam for 14 years, said looking at Vietnam’s labor market, he sees the gap in skills and the gap between ability and expectation.
Actually, vocationally trained workers account for 30% of the workforce, which is equivalent to one third of that of newly industrialized economies admitted Minister of Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs Nguyen Thi Kim Ngan.
Vocational training is not what is needed when vocational schools aren’t teaching the skills the market is demanding. Job training schools also lack qualified lecturers and experts.
“Vietnam is training people in the skills that we know, not the ones that a developing society and employers need,” Minister Ngan acknowledged.
Ngan pledged that her ministry will focus on four tasks: vocational training, creating jobs, changing salary policies and perfecting social welfare policies, all aimed at being more suitable to a market economy.
The Minister emphasized the training of workers up to employers’ requirements. “If you have any requirements about the number, the quality of workers and the fields of training, tell us, and we will satisfy your needs,” she stated.
Regarding salary policy reforms, Ngan said the ministry will not set a ceiling salary, but will establish a minimum or floor salary. Employers are authorized to set pay rates for their workers, as long as it doesn’t fall below the floor level.
A representative from the Vietnam Post and Telecommunications Group (VNPT) spoke about employees at State-owned enterprises (SOEs) being paid so much less than the qualified staff running private and foreign-invested companies, causing the “brain drain” phenomenon at SOEs.
Minister Ngan said the minimum salary set for SOEs is higher than that of foreign-owned enterprises but the real income of employees of the former is less than the latter. She stressed that the State only sets the minimum salary and designs general salary policies and does not directly intervene in individual business’s salary policies. SOEs can pay their workers as much as they are able, as long as it is not less than the floor level set by the Government.
She said the Ministry of Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs is willing to listen to, exchange ideas with and solve any salary-related problems side by side with businesses.
She informed employers that the minimum salary will be the same for all companies by 2012.
About the employment of foreign workers in Vietnam, Ngan said Vietnam will continue completing its legal system on this issue, will raise the cap the number of foreign workers that can be used by a company in Vietnam, simplify labor registration formalities and give more rights to businesses in recruiting foreign staffs.
Martil Gi, Cocacola Indochina General Director: Doing business in Vietnam, what surprises me most is the family-level businesses where it seems that each member has his own business. I question the management skills of this type of business.
Ralf Mattaes, Managing Director of TNS Vietnam: Vietnam has the best policy for workers in the world. As all companies are trying to retain their staff, Vietnam has an advantage – Vietnamese workers are very loyal, and can’t be bought.
http://youphim.com/veoh/anhfix/vietnamnet.gif
http://english.vietnamnet.vn/dataimages/200801/original/images1480521_1.jpg
Foreign investors at the conference
Martil Gil, Cocacola Indochina General Director who has been working in Vietnam for 14 years, said looking at Vietnam’s labor market, he sees the gap in skills and the gap between ability and expectation.
Actually, vocationally trained workers account for 30% of the workforce, which is equivalent to one third of that of newly industrialized economies admitted Minister of Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs Nguyen Thi Kim Ngan.
Vocational training is not what is needed when vocational schools aren’t teaching the skills the market is demanding. Job training schools also lack qualified lecturers and experts.
“Vietnam is training people in the skills that we know, not the ones that a developing society and employers need,” Minister Ngan acknowledged.
Ngan pledged that her ministry will focus on four tasks: vocational training, creating jobs, changing salary policies and perfecting social welfare policies, all aimed at being more suitable to a market economy.
The Minister emphasized the training of workers up to employers’ requirements. “If you have any requirements about the number, the quality of workers and the fields of training, tell us, and we will satisfy your needs,” she stated.
Regarding salary policy reforms, Ngan said the ministry will not set a ceiling salary, but will establish a minimum or floor salary. Employers are authorized to set pay rates for their workers, as long as it doesn’t fall below the floor level.
A representative from the Vietnam Post and Telecommunications Group (VNPT) spoke about employees at State-owned enterprises (SOEs) being paid so much less than the qualified staff running private and foreign-invested companies, causing the “brain drain” phenomenon at SOEs.
Minister Ngan said the minimum salary set for SOEs is higher than that of foreign-owned enterprises but the real income of employees of the former is less than the latter. She stressed that the State only sets the minimum salary and designs general salary policies and does not directly intervene in individual business’s salary policies. SOEs can pay their workers as much as they are able, as long as it is not less than the floor level set by the Government.
She said the Ministry of Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs is willing to listen to, exchange ideas with and solve any salary-related problems side by side with businesses.
She informed employers that the minimum salary will be the same for all companies by 2012.
About the employment of foreign workers in Vietnam, Ngan said Vietnam will continue completing its legal system on this issue, will raise the cap the number of foreign workers that can be used by a company in Vietnam, simplify labor registration formalities and give more rights to businesses in recruiting foreign staffs.
Martil Gi, Cocacola Indochina General Director: Doing business in Vietnam, what surprises me most is the family-level businesses where it seems that each member has his own business. I question the management skills of this type of business.
Ralf Mattaes, Managing Director of TNS Vietnam: Vietnam has the best policy for workers in the world. As all companies are trying to retain their staff, Vietnam has an advantage – Vietnamese workers are very loyal, and can’t be bought.
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