Inter-sectoral working group for union member development

More agencies participate

Developing union members and establishing grassroots trade unions is an important task but faces many difficulties, especially in areas with many small businesses and dispersed labor. From that reality, Nam Phuoc Commune Trade Union (Da Nang) established inter-sectoral working groups to coordinate in developing union members.

The People's Committees of Nam Phuoc, Duy Nghia and Thu Bon communes in coordination with the Nam Phuoc Commune Trade Union recently launched 3 inter-sectoral working groups. The composition includes not only trade union officials but also representatives of the People's Committee, Police, Culture - Social Department, Economic Department and Social Insurance agency.

A noteworthy point of this model is that the task of developing union members is no longer considered a private job of Trade Union officials. Each agency participates with its own functions, data and conditions. Some units support enterprise review, some agencies grasp labor and social insurance data; some forces support verifying operational conditions or connecting for Trade Unions to access businesses and employees.

According to Ms. Lam Thi Vy - Chairwoman of Nam Phuoc Commune Trade Union, through review, in the three areas, there are still many businesses and units with workers but have not established grassroots trade unions. Most businesses are not large in scale, are scattered, and labor is volatile, so access cannot be applied in the same way to everyone. That is also the reason why the participation of more agencies is of practical significance.

Stick to each business to find suitable ways

According to Ms. Lam Thi Vy, in the first 9 months of 2026, Nam Phuoc Commune Trade Union established 6 grassroots trade unions, reaching 200% of the target; the results of union member development reached nearly 77% of the annual target. Currently, the Commune Trade Union manages 24 grassroots trade unions and professional unions.

However, for Nam Phuoc Commune Trade Union, achieving the new establishment target does not mean the task has been completed. Because in some enterprises that already have grassroots trade unions, the number of workers who have not joined the Trade Union is still large, so the establishment of grassroots trade unions and the development of union members are still being further promoted by the Commune Trade Union" - Ms. Lam Thi Vy said.

According to Ms. Nguyen Thi Ngoc Anh - Vice Chairwoman of Da Nang City Labor Federation, currently businesses have different production characteristics: Working shifts, places where workers change frequently, places where it is difficult to arrange time to gather workers for propaganda. Therefore, instead of making a list of businesses and then applying a common mobilization method, the inter-sectoral working groups just established in Nam Phuoc must classify and stick to each unit, innovate propaganda and mobilization methods, so that they both get work for themselves and do not affect the production activities of the business.

In particular, the most important issue, according to Ms. Nguyen Thi Ngoc Anh: "Establishing a grassroots trade union is only the first step. Whether that organization actually exists depends on whether it gathers workers, has regular activities and solves issues that union members are concerned about.

From a single Trade Union finding businesses, the model in Nam Phuoc is shifting to mobilizing many agencies to jointly find sources, share information and jointly take responsibility for the results. If that approach is maintained and replicated, commune and ward trade unions will not only establish more grassroots trade unions, but also contribute to building a more substantive Trade Union organization right from its formation.

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