Innovation to better serve workers

Choose appropriate forms and content of training

One of the goals for 2026 is that 100% of newly elected grassroots union chairmen will be trained and fostered in an appropriate manner. In 2025, the Vietnam Trade Union will focus on arranging and streamlining the apparatus, at the provincial level there will be 49 departments; the Central Trade Union will have 17 units. The number of established commune, ward and special zone trade unions reached 532/699; public service units decreased from 12 units to 7 units; vocational training institutions decreased from 19 to 9 units. Therefore, choosing the form of training and fostering to suit the actual working characteristics of the grassroots trade union staff is very important.

For example, in Hanoi, right after the Ward and Commune Trade Union Congress, most units organized skills training for grassroots trade union cadres. Some units focus on training to improve the efficiency of management and use of Trade Union finances in a transparent and effective manner like the Trade Union of Yen Nghia Ward (Hanoi). Identifying the work of Trade Union finance as one of the key tasks, of special significance to Trade Union activities, Ward Trade Unions have promptly organized training, improved skills and expertise to discuss and answer some difficulties of the current facilities such as updating new documents, regulations on revenue and expenditure, fund management, records archiving, reporting regimes, budgeting, settlement, etc.

In particular, after the arrangement of local authorities at 2 levels, union work and union financial revenue and expenditure activities have changed a lot, causing confusion for union officials at the grassroots level...

With a innovative mindset, there are wards that coordinate to organize training, such as Hai Ba Trung, Bach Mai, and Vinh Tuy Ward Trade Unions coordinating to organize professional training for members of the Executive Committee, Inspection Committees of Trade Unions of 3 wards; Chairmen, Vice Chairmen of Trade Unions, and members of Executive Committees of units with 100 or more union members.

The Vietnam Textile and Garment Trade Union has coordinated with the International Trade Union to organize a training course on "Effective dialogue skills at the workplace and collective bargaining" for union officials, representatives of business leaders, union members of 12 enterprises in the Southern region; some major brands and trade unions under the Ho Chi Minh City Labor Federation... The above examples show that trade unions at all levels have organized training forms to improve operational skills suitable for both content and form for the trade union staff.

Meeting what cadres are lacking - businesses are in need - employees are demanding

In the period of 2020 - 2025, the work of developing a training strategy for full-time union cadres has had clear changes at many levels, both in terms of awareness and implementation methods. Many localities, sectors and Corporations have proactively issued long-term plans, specific projects or training programs for each stage, in which the overall goals, targets to be achieved, key tasks and implementation solutions are identified.

Typically, Lao Cai Provincial Federation of Labor has issued Plan No. 52/KH-LDLD along with the Project to develop a team of full-time union officials, setting requirements for standardizing and improving comprehensive skills for officials in the context of the province promoting industrialization and expanding industrial parks; or like Vietnam Education Trade Union building a training program according to modules, grouping content according to each field of work and each union level, helping cadres have a clear and scientific learning roadmap.

The work of innovating the content, methods and forms of training for union cadres has been carried out more strongly, extensively and comprehensively than in the previous period. This is the task group with the most obvious changes in the entire Vietnam Trade Union organization system, demonstrating the great efforts of trade unions at all levels in the context of complicated developments in labor relations, pressure from the digital transformation process and new requirements from the practice of representing and protecting workers' rights. The training content is increasingly practical, focusing on skills, there has been an important shift from leaning towards theory and legal documents to focusing on core groups of skills that union officials need in practice.

In particular, the courses are designed in the direction of "What cadres are lacking - businesses need - employees are demanding". Many units have reported a sharp increase in the proportion of content such as: Skills in resolving labor disputes, grassroots mediation, skills in handling stressful situations; understanding new labor laws, such as the 2019 Labor Code, laws on occupational safety and health, social insurance, health insurance; communication skills, skills to approach workers on digital platforms, presentation and communication skills; skills in digital transformation of trade unions, union member management on digital platforms, online activities; skills in organizing movements and mobilizing union members in the non-state sector; dialogue skills and collective bargaining, especially in FDI enterprises and industrial parks...

These contents have been effectively implemented by many provincial and municipal labor federations, central industry unions and equivalent, and corporation unions under the Vietnam General Confederation of Labor, with dozens of modules updated, systematized and standardized. Many training programs have put into practice typical dispute situations, simulated practical tripartite dialogues, used illustrative videos, and analyzed real-life incidents. This is a new point compared to before, helping union officials "learn to do" instead of just "learning to know".

A special point is that the Trade Union innovates training associated with the requirements of practical labor relations - what employees need. These are training modules directly linked to hot issues of labor relations, such as: Salary negotiation, labor norms; collective dispute handling; stabilizing labor relations in FDI enterprises; the impact of digital transformation and automation on employment; skills in organizing the workers' movement in the context of strong development of social networks... Thanks to the innovation of training content in this direction, many union officials have had clear maturity, demonstrated in their ability to dialogue with enterprises, participate in building collective labor agreements, handle disputes and mobilize union members more effectively.

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