Professional Soldiers: Are They Entitled to a Salary Increase with the Wage Reform Implemented from July 1, 2024?
Do Professional Soldiers Receive a Salary Increase with the 2024 Wage Reform under Resolution 27?
The salary scale for the military and police as outlined in sub-item 3.1, Section 3, Part II of Resolution 27-NQ/TW 2018 specifies the reform content regarding the design of a new salary structure as follows:
- Basic salary (accounting for approximately 70% of the total salary fund)
- Allowances (accounting for approximately 30% of the total salary fund).
- Additional bonuses (the bonus fund is approximately 10% of the total annual salary fund, excluding allowances).
Moreover, Resolution 27/NQ-TW 2018 proposes reforms for the military and police as follows:
A new salary system based on job position, titles, and leadership roles will be developed and issued to replace the current salary system; old salaries will be converted to the new system, ensuring they are not lower than the current salary.
Thus, according to the above content, after the expected implementation of the wage reform from July 1, 2024, professional soldiers will receive salaries based on job position, titles, and leadership roles, replacing the current salary system and ensuring the new salary is not lower than the current salary level.
Additionally, according to the spirit of Resolution 27/NQ-TW 2018, besides the income from salaries and allowances as currently in place, after the expected wage reform from July 1, 2024, the military and police may also receive additional income from bonuses (the bonus fund is approximately 10% of the total annual salary fund, excluding allowances).
From 2025 onwards, continue to adjust the average annual salary increase by 7% for officials and public employees, armed forces until the lowest salary is equal to or higher than the lowest salary in Region I of the enterprise sector.
Therefore, the salary of professional soldiers according to Resolution 27-NQ/TW 2018 from 2025 may increase by an average of 7% per year until the lowest salary is equal to or higher than the lowest salary in Region I of the enterprise sector.
*Do Professional Soldiers Receive a Salary Increase with the Wage Reform from July 1, 2024?*
What Factors Are the Salary Scale for Professional Soldiers Based On?
At point c, item 3.1, Section II of Resolution 27/NQ-TW 2018, specific factors to design the new salary scale are identified as follows:
Reform content
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c) Identify specific factors to design the new salary scale
- Abolish the statutory pay rate and the current salary coefficient, and construct a basic salary with a specific amount of money in the new salary scale.
- Uniformly implement labor contract policies according to the provisions of the Labor Code (or service contract) for those performing support and service tasks (requiring training below the intermediate level), not applying the officials and public employees salary scale for these subjects.
- Determine the lowest salary of officials and public employees in the public sector as the salary of those performing tasks requiring intermediate level training (level 1), not less than the minimum wage of trained workers in the enterprise sector.
- Expand the salary relationship as a basis to determine specific salary levels in the salary system, gradually approaching the salary relationship of the enterprise sector suitable to the State's resources.
- Improve policies on regular salary increases and pre-term salary increases for officials and public employees and armed forces in line with the regulations of the new salary scale.
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According to the above regulation, the factors for constructing the salary scale for professional soldiers include:
- Abolish the statutory pay rate and the current salary coefficient, and construct a basic salary with a specific amount of money in the new salary scale.
- Expand the salary relationship as a basis to determine specific salary levels in the salary system, gradually approaching the salary relationship of the enterprise sector suitable to the State's resources.
- Improve policies on regular salary increases and pre-term salary increases for officials and public employees and armed forces in line with the regulations of the new salary scale.
What is the Roadmap for Implementing Wage Reform under Resolution 27?
At Resolution 27-NQ/TW 2018 specific goals for wage reform from 2021 to 2025 and a vision to 2030 are set forth as follows:
* For the public sector
- From 2021, apply new unified salary policies for officials and public employees, armed forces across the entire political system.
- In 2021, the lowest salary for officials and public employees will be equal to the average minimum wage across regions in the enterprise sector.
- Periodically adjust the salary level appropriately with the consumer price index, economic growth rate, and the State budget’s capability.
- By 2025, the lowest salary for officials and public employees will be higher than the average minimum wage across regions in the enterprise sector.
- By 2030, the lowest salary for officials and public employees will be equal to or higher than the minimum wage in the highest region of the enterprise sector.
* For the enterprise sector
- From 2021, the State periodically adjusts the regional minimum wage based on the recommendation of the National Wage Council. Enterprises are to implement salary policies based on negotiations and agreements between employers and employees and the representative collective of employees; the State will not directly intervene in the salary policies of enterprises.
- Manage labor and salaries in State-owned enterprises by costing salary expenses associated with the business tasks of enterprises until 2025, moving forward to allocate business tasks of enterprises by 2030.
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