Vietnam: What are the occupational accidents classified? What are the regulations on reporting occupational accidents?
What does an occupational accident in Vietnam mean?
Pursuant to Clause 8, Article 3 of the Law on Occupational Safety and Hygiene 2015, an occupational accident means an accident that causes injuries to any body part and function of an employee or causes death and occurs during the course of work, in connection with their performance of a job or a task.
What are the occupational accidents in Vietnam classified?
Pursuant to Article 9 of Decree 39/2016/ND-CP on the classification of occupational accidents as follows:
- Occupational accident causing an employee’s death (hereafter referred to as a fatal occupational accident) is the occupational accident causing the employee’s death in one of the following cases:
+ Death at the scene of the accident;
+ Death on the way to an emergency or during an emergency;
+ Death during treatment or death from wound recurrence caused by occupational accidents according to the conclusions in the record of forensic examination;
+ The employee is declared dead according to the conclusion of the Court for the missing case.
- Occupational accident causing serious injury to the employee (hereafter referred to as serious occupational accident) is one which causes at least one injury to the employee as stipulated in Appendix II issued with Decree 39/2016/ND-CP.
- Occupational accident causing light injury to an employee is not one of the above cases.
What are the regulations on reporting occupational accidents in Vietnam?
Pursuant to Clause 1, Article 34 of the 2015 Law on Occupational Safety and Hygiene, the regulations on reporting occupational accidents in Vietnam are:
- Upon the occurrence or possible occurrence of the occupational accident or safety threat at the workplace, the victim or the witness shall immediately inform the person in charge and the employer to promptly give responses and eliminate the consequences;
- If the accident prescribed in Point a, Article 34 of the 2015 Law on Occupational Safety and Hygiene is fatal or causes serious injuries to at least two employees, the employer shall immediately report the accident to the labor authority of the province where the accident occurred; and concurrently inform police security authority of the district, town, city affiliated to province, or city affiliated to the central-affiliated city regarding the accident resulting in death.
- If the accident or breakdown occurs in the following fields: radioactivity, petroleum exploration, and extraction, vehicles of rail transport, waterway, road transport, air transport, and units of People’s armed forces, the employer shall report the accident/breakdown as prescribed in specialized legislation;
- If the accident is fatal or causes serious injuries to an employee without the employment contract, his/her family or the witness shall immediately report such accident to the People’s Committee of the commune, ward, and town where the accident occurred.
- If the accident is fatal or causes serious injuries to at least two employees, the People’s Committee of the commune shall immediately report to the police authority of the district and labor authority of the province where the accident occurred.
- If a safety threat occurs relating to an employee without the employment contract, the witness shall immediately report the breakdown to the People’s Committee of the commune where the breakdown occurred as prescribed in Article 19 and Article 36 of the 2015 Law on Occupational Safety and Hygiene.
What are the responsibilities of employers to employees suffering from occupational accidents in Vietnam?
Pursuant to Article 38 of the Law on Occupational Safety and Hygiene 2015, the responsibilities of employers to employees suffering from occupational accidents in Vietnam are:
- Promptly give first aid and emergency aid to the employee and advance payment for first aid, emergency aid, and treatment for the employee;
- Pay for first aid, emergency aid, and treatment for the employee until their health become stable, including:
+ Co-payment and costs not covered by health insurance for the employee if the employee has health insurance;
+ Payment for medical assessment of decreased work capacity if the employee’s working capacity decreases by under 5% as concluded by the Medical Examination Council;
+ Full payment for treatment for the employee if the employee has not health insurance;
- Fully pay salary for the employee if he/she is absent from work during the treatment and health rehabilitation period;
- The employer shall pay compensation for the employee suffering from an occupational accident that is not entirely his/her fault and the employee suffering an occupational disease as follows:
+ At least 1.5 months’ salary for the employee whose working capacity decrease is between 5% and 10%; 0.4 month’s salary shall be added for each additional 1% working capacity decrease regarding the employee whose working capacity decrease is between 11% and 80% ;
+ At least 30 months’ salary for the employee working capacity decrease is at least 81% or for the employee’s relatives if the employee dies from an occupational accident or an occupational disease;
- Provide the employee suffering from the occupational accident with a benefit of at least 40% of the amount prescribed in Clause 4 of this Article if the accident is entirely his/her fault;
- Recommend the employee for medical assessment of decreased work capacity, treatment, convalescence, and health rehabilitation as prescribed;
- Pay compensation or benefit for the victim within 05 days, from the date on which the conclusion on working capacity rate was made by Medical Examination Council or from the date on which the report on the investigation into the occupational accident was published by the investigation team in relation to occupational accidents causing deaths;
- Assign works appropriate for the employee’s health according to the conclusion of the Medical Examination Council after treatment and health rehabilitation if the employee keeps working;
- File a claim for the insurance benefits from the Insurance fund.
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