Off the wire
• Indian markets open lower  • Vietnam eyes 5 to 6 bln USD in processed coffee export revenue by 2030  • New Zealand lawmakers lay out problems facing new government leaders  • 81 percent of Vietnamese population covered by health insurance  • Tokyo shares close higher by break on U.S. stimulus bet, soft yen  • Super sniffer dogs to greet travelers to New Zealand  • Sydney to hold public service to mark 2nd anniversary of hostage crisis  • Japan's core private-sector machinery orders rise 4.1 percent on month in Oct.  • S.Korean ruling political party begins to splinter after presidential impeachment  • Australia says ready to crack down on "welfare crooks"  
You are here: 　 Home

Vietnam considers doubling overtime limit following calls from foreign firms

Xinhua, December 12, 2016 Adjust font size:

Vietnam's Ministry of Labor, Invalids and Social Affairs has proposed an amendment to the country's Labor Code that would sharply increase the country's overtime limit.

Under the proposal, an employee may work a maximum of 600 extra hours per year, doubling the overtime limit currently imposed on some specific areas, according to a statement on Vietnamese government's e-Portal on Monday.

According to the Labor Code, an employee can work a maximum of 200 extra hours per year. In some specific areas like textiles and garments, leather, aquaculture processing, telecommunications, water and power supplies, overtime is capped at 300 hours per year.

The move comes after Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc asked relevant ministries and agencies to consider adjusting the overtime limit following recommendations from foreign firms.

Several South Korean and Japanese firms have complained that the current limit in Vietnam is too low, and have suggested the government should double or triple the figure.

According to local VNExpress online newspaper on Monday, the maximum number of overtime hours allowed in Vietnam is currently less than other Southeast Asian countries.

While Vietnamese workers are not allowed to work for more than 300 extra hours per year, the figures are 1,800 hours in Thailand, 1,250 in Malaysia, 860 in Singapore and 540 in Laos.

A recent survey conducted by Vietnam's state-run television VTV at the Thang Long Industrial Zone in Vietnamese capital Hanoi revealed that 97 percent of manual workers want to work overtime as the money from those extra hours accounts for a third of their monthly incomes. Endit