Connecting from union meals

Union meals are not simply about increasing nutrition

In 2025, the Union Meal program once again made a special mark in caring for union members and employees. As one of about 10,000 factory workers of Canon Vietnam Co., Ltd. in Thang Long Industrial Park, Mr. Nguyen Xuan Truong could not hide his surprise and joy when participating in the Union Meal. During his 7 years working at the Company, Mr. Truong witnessed and participated in many activities organized by the Union.

Mr. Truong said that his daily meals usually include 2 main dishes, one vegetable dish, and one soup that is just enough. The food content of the Union Meal is also increased in the amount of food, so it is likely that the workers will reduce the portion of rice because the portion of food alone is enough. Mr. Truong also said that the food in the Union Meal is decorated more beautifully than usual, so it looks more attractive...

Also sharing about Union Meals, Ms. Vu Thi Hong Ha, who has worked at the Company for 4 years, hopes to have more Union Meals... In particular, each person will receive 100,000 VND from the Union on this occasion.

Witnessing the joy of workers and the solidarity at the Union Meal, Mr. Ryo Onoue - Director of the Department of Administrative and Human Resources - was moved to say: "In Japan, there have been no similar activities like this. Thank you to the Union for creating a warm atmosphere for all workers...". According to Mr. Ryo Onoue, the Union Meal is a gratitude and thank you to union members who always strive to work hard and thereby they will be more attached to the business.

Union meals are a testament to the activity of focusing on caring for and enhancing the welfare of union members and employees from the most concrete and practical things. The 2025 Union Meal continues to be more substantial, aiming at union members and employees directly involved in production and business in enterprises. In particular, focusing on large enterprises with a large number of employees and having daily collective kitchens. Most grassroots trade unions have also promoted their role in mobilizing and negotiating employers to allocate resources to the Trade Union Meal activity.

According to the Vietnam General Confederation of Labor, the average amount spent on a meal at the 2025 Trade Union Meal is higher (68,500 VND/meal, compared to 50,300 VND/meal in 2024), the value and quality of the meals have improved significantly.

Union members and employees assessed the Union Meal as not only a simple shift meal, with material care but also having great spiritual significance, fostering solidarity, sharing and understanding among members of the organization. Most trade unions organize union meals at the location where employees are held, some units do not have kitchens but have organized them at a location that is convenient for employees to participate; some units organize them right at the construction site, labor camp; some units even organize combined resorts in tourist areas.

In reality, in 2025, with more than 5,000 Union Meals held nationwide, this activity bears the mark of the Union organization through dialogue and negotiation to better care for the practical needs of union members and employees, aiming to build long-term welfare programs and can be implemented long-term and regularly throughout the year. The Union Meal has created an atmosphere of solidarity and understanding between employees and employers; employees trust the union organization, voluntarily apply to join the union, contributing to promoting the development of union members at units and enterprises.

At the same time, promote propaganda and mobilization of employers to raise awareness, continue to care, care, and improve nutrition of shift meals for employees, contributing to ensuring health and regenerating labor force so that employees can work with peace of mind, compete in labor and production.

From the direct benefit of employees through the Union Meal program, the Presidium of the Vietnam General Confederation of Labor aims to continue implementing the Union Meal Program to make this activity one of the long-term, periodic welfare programs, practically caring for union members and employees.

Most recently, among the activities to care for union members and employees on the occasion of the Lunar New Year 2026, a Union Meal will be organized for union members and employees. The value of the meal in the "Union Meal" is 70,000 VND/meal from the Union's financial resources, plus value from the funding of the enterprise or other socialized sources (if any, unlimited value).

100% of union members are fully informed about policies and programs for welfare care

In addition to the Union Meal, there are many activities to care for and benefit union members and employees such as Workers' Month, Tet Sum Vay, and Thanks to employees.

One of the major changes in caring for the welfare of union members and workers of the Vietnam Trade Union is the goal of having 100% of union members fully informed about the policies and programs for caring for the welfare of the union organization by 2030. Strive to spend at least 60% of total expenditure from union financial resources on activities to care for the welfare of union members and employees. The Trade Union also strives for over 80% of dialogues to have better content on welfare than the provisions of law; at least 50% of Collective Labor Agreements signed or participated in by Trade Union organizations are classified as having quality of type B or higher.

The Vietnam General Confederation of Labor will develop and implement stable and long-term policies to care for the welfare of union members and workers such as: policies to support union members in housing; support the construction, purchase of houses, and repair of houses; support for renting houses at trade union institutions and social housing invested in and built by the Vietnam General Confederation of Labor.

Some solutions proposed are implementing policies to support union members and employees when facing difficulties, reducing working hours, or losing their jobs; policies to support vacations and vacations; policies to support union members and employees working in the informal sector...

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