Illegal strikes: A perspective from the grassroots in Nghe An

Ms. Le Thi Anh Lam - Full-time union officer at BSE Electronics Limited Liability Company (Nam Cam Industrial Park):

The strike is a fire that has been smoldering for a long time.

Since its establishment, BSE Electronics Limited Company has gone through 3 strikes. In the first strike in 2013, because I had not yet returned to work here, I only heard that the reason for the strike was because the workers were upset about issues related to salary, food, benefits, etc. In 2018, workers went on strike because they thought that the value of Tet gifts was not commensurate with the amount announced by the company. Although the company's union later checked the price and proved the value of the gifts, the workers still did not accept it. In early 2022, during the epidemic, workers went on strike with the direct reason of wanting to take 10 days off after spraying disinfectant. This is an unreasonable demand and according to regulations, the factory can operate normally after only 3 days of spraying.

Strike at BSE Electronics Limited in 2013. File photo.

The common point in all three strikes is that the workers have had a simmering dissatisfaction with the business for many reasons before. After being lured and incited, they only need to find the closest and biggest reason to stand up and strike. In addition, with businesses having many production facilities, workers at one facility will follow suit and compare with another facility to organize a strike. Workers between businesses in the same field or location will also have similar comparisons.

From the reality in my company, I think that if the company leaders need to promptly listen to the workers' wishes andreceive commentsIf there is a union, strikes will be avoided. Workers themselves do not want to strike, because they need jobs, they need wages, so as long as their lives are guaranteed, they will concentrate on their work.

In addition, after a strike, it is necessary to find and strictly deal with the leaders who incite, entice, and divide workers. Without strict warnings and reminders, these people will continue to find ways to cause trouble.

Ms. Nguyen Thi Thanh - VietGlory Leather Shoes Limited Liability Company (Dien Chau):

After the strike, the union's position was raised.

The company was established not long ago, but our company has experienced two consecutive strikes in two years. The first time, the strike took place when the union had not yet been established. The second time, in early 2022, the workers went on strike with the main reason being low wages and Tet gifts that were not commensurate with the amount of 300,000 VND given by the union. In addition, incitement from outside parties was also a reason for the strike.

Strike at VietGlory Limited Liability Company in early 2022. Photo: DT

Looking at this situation in general, I think the cause comes from many sides, mainly from the weakness of the young union executive committee. We have no experience in handling petitions, grasping workers' opinions, not organizing close dialogues, and not becoming a bridge between workers and business owners. Since the strike, we have learned our lesson, trying to promptly handle workers' thoughts and wishes through the suggestion box. Every month, the union executive committee members will have a meeting to directly answer and resolve workers' questions and petitions.

In addition, in recent activities and programs, the company has also created more favorable conditions for the company's trade union to show its concern and care for its employees. The position of the trade union in the company has therefore also been raised.

Mr. Le Thanh Minh - Chairman of Luxshare ICT Limited Liability Company (VSIP Industrial Park):

Transparency, harmony, human resource investment to prevent strikes

With more than 7,000 workers, we understand that if our company does not implement good policies and regulations for employees, labor relations will be very complicated, leading to a very high risk of strikes. Fortunately, since its establishment, the company has not had a strike.

In order to have labor competition, balance labor relations as well as ensure the lives of workers, we accept to pay basic wages and regimes higher than regulations and compared to businesses with the same turnover in the area. In addition, the company creates conditions for the company's union to organize activities to care for the spiritual life of workers, such as organizing sports tournaments, music clubs, etc. With gift giving programs, we often investigate the wishes of workers in advance, publicly disclose information about prices and suppliers and let workers swipe codes to choose gifts according to their needs.

To ensure harmonious labor relations, Luxshare ICT Co., Ltd. has applied many experiences from other branches in the system. Photo: Diep Thanh

In addition, we consider regular dialogue as the key to ensuring harmonious labor relations. In addition, the company has many direct and indirect channels such as zalo groups, mailboxes, hotlines, etc. to receive suggestions and complaints from workers. The company's union is responsible for resolving and responding to complaints in writing within a maximum of 7-10 days from the date of receipt.

Besides, from the experience of factories in the South, we have a team of assistants who specialize in collecting and understanding workers' opinions, in case the union officials are too busy or the workers do not trust them.union staff. Not only grasping the lives, psychology, and opinions of workers, this team of assistants also updates changes in policies and regimes for workers so that workers always know that their opinions are listened to and accepted. When handled promptly, strikes will be minimized. To avoid spontaneous strikes, even when labor relations are stable, we also proactively propagate to workers about the order and procedures for strikes in accordance with the provisions of law.

Mr. Le Van Son - Chairman of the Trade Union of Haivina Kim Lien Limited Liability Company (Nam Dan):

Only soft solutions can be used to resolve strikes.

In 2019, our company had a strike due to issues related to salary calculation. This is a regulation of the entire system of 4 companies across the country, so it cannot be changed at will. Although the payroll department later explained, many workers still did not understand and did not accept it.

As union officials, we find it very difficult to do professional work, receive salaries from the company, but need to...protect rights and interestsof workers. In many situations, union officials tried to persuade the business owners but they were rejected. Even when they asked for help from the higher-level union, the company leaders still did not agree. If they continued to do it to the end, union officials could easily face the risk of losing personal benefits, or even losing their jobs when their term ended. That is a reality that many union officials have to accept.

Mr. Le Van Son - Chairman of the Trade Union of Haivina Kim Lien Limited Liability Company shares his experience in resolving strikes. Photo: Diep Thanh.

After many years as the president of the grassroots trade union, I affirm that to resolve labor conflicts in general and strikes in particular, we can only use soft measures, not hard and mechanical measures. In which, direct dialogue is an important link. However, reality shows that there needs to be more involvement, intervention and witness of State management agencies so that dialogues and negotiations have more weight.

Specifically, in large-scale enterprises, when labor conferences and collective labor agreements are attended by both the Provincial Labor Federation and the Department of Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs, the quality and influence will be much greater. Once labor conferences and labor agreements are effective, the risk of illegal strikes will be prevented and minimized.

Diep Thanh