PM lauds workers’ contributions to national development

 Hanoi (VNA) – Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc applauded contributions of workers to the country’s development in 2017 during his visit to the Vietnam General Confederation of Labour (VGCL) on February 22, the second day after the Lunar New Year holiday.

The leader also hailed the VGCL’s efforts to bring a warm Tet holiday for all workers, particularly those in disadvantaged circumstances. He commended the VGCL and the southern province of Dong Nai for their coordination to timely handle wage-related problems of 1,800 workers in the province after their employer left Vietnam without paying salaries.

He asked the confederation to make thoroughly preparation for a programme of dialogues between the PM and workers in the northern region.

Recalling similar dialogues held in the southern and central regions in 2016 and 2017, PM Phuc said he heard workers’ proposals for institutions of culture, housing, kindergartens and canteens.

Since then, a number of such facilities have been built, initially bringing tangible benefits to workers, he noted.

As the VGCL will hold a national congress later this year, the PM said trade union congresses at all levels should include the fourth industrial revolution in their agenda in order to seek ways to improve professional skills for Vietnamese workers, helping them catch up with scientific and technological advancements in the new context.

PM Phuc also noted that labour and trade union issues are part of negotiations of the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP), and asked the confederation to take the initiative in assisting workers in enhancing their skills and proposing suitable legal institutions to protect rights and interests of the worker class amidst the competitive environment.

The PM also requested the VGCL to coordinate with competent agencies to develop more trade union institutions for workers, which, he said, have remained limited.

Earlier, the PM approved the VGCL’s project on building trade union institutions at industrial parks and export processing zones.-VNA