Where’s the labor union?
“Most laborers in my group do not know who the trade union members are in my company,” a worker said. “We only hear about the trade union when it collects its dues every month.” About 24 percent of female migrant workers surveyed had yet to join the trade union at their place of employment. According to Nguyen Thi Lan Huong, director of the Labor Science Institute under the Ministry of Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs, it is impossible to protect the interests of laborers if trade unions do not promote their role of protecting workers and raising awareness of their rights. The Vietnam General Confederation of Labor says there were 144 strikes nationwide in the first six months of this year, barely 40 percent of the number in the same period last year. The most common reasons for striking were unpaid wages and overtime, poor conditions, social insurance complaints and too many extra working hours.
