VOV: What do you think the Trade Union organisation should do to increase workers’ capacity to meet the requirements of the integration process?

Mr Tung: The Trade Union organisation should enhance information dissemination and help employees improve their educational and professional skills as well as their workmanship. In addition, employees should be fully aware of the law and observe it to protect their interests.

Vietnamese employees are diligent, hardworking and intelligent, but most of them are unskilled as training remains limited. One important task of the Trade Union organisation is to create favourable conditions for employees to improve their skills and help them fulfil their tasks. Though there are many vocational schools in the country, most of them are of low quality due to outmoded equipment and technology. This requires employees to learn at both these schools and enterprises. Some schools installed with modern equipment have recently cooperated with enterprises in training skilled employees. Therefore, the Trade Union organisation must play its role as a bridge between vocational schools and enterprises in developing joint training programmes for employees so that they can meet enterprises’ requirements after taking courses. In this cooperation model, we should take into account the quality of training and avoid wastefulness.  

VOV: As a National Assembly deputy in the past two tenures, what do you think of the working class’ vanguard role and current position?

Mr Tung: It is obvious that employees’ living conditions depend on the level of national development. In fact, they are not up to par or the same, many still lead hard lives as the gap between rich and poor is widening. There is still a disparity in salaries between skilled and unskilled employees, not to say, a growing number of redundant or unemployed workers. What concerns me most is that some employees show signs of violating the working principles and ethics as they have low political consciousness. Reality shows that the strength of the working class lies in their principles and political consciousness and that Trade Union activities are always linked to workers’ activities. As representatives for the people, National Assembly deputies must understand their feelings and aspirations, help them ease worries and convey their concerns and aspirations to the Party and State. The deputies frankly dare to speak out and struggle against opportunists, decadent elements and others who cause trouble to the people.

VOV: Could you underline several workers’ pressing concerns at present?

Mr Tung: Housing and salary. In addition, many enterprises hire foreign specialists to work in several areas that Vietnamese employees can manage. But as I mentioned earlier, the system of vocational schools is incapable of training such highly skilled workers. I think that vocational schools should develop programmes and focus on training specialists to replace foreigners. As far as I know, many enterprises have shifted to training local specialists. During a recent visit to Ba Ria-Vung Tau province in the south, I called on a hide tanning company, which employs 40 foreign specialists among its 700 member staff. I insisted on the need to train local specialists and the company’s director said this would be done in the next two years.

VOV: What does the Trade Union organisation do to tackle the problem?

Mr Tung: Trade Union workers are enthusiastic and hard working, but limited in protecting employees’ interests. Those who dare to struggle against the negative phenomena will be sacked by employers sooner or later. To make them fully devoted to trade union activities, we should have proper mechanisms for protecting trade union workers. The crux of the matter is to grasp and observe the law strictly. By so doing, enterprises will have more opportunities to develop and create a harmonious working environment for both employees and employers to contribute to local development.

VOV: Thank you.