Can a lower secondary school teacher in Vietnam simultaneously hold two professional positions and the role of Trade Union Chairman?

Can a lower secondary school teacher in Vietnam simultaneously hold two professional positions and the role of Trade Union Chairman?

Pursuant to Clause 5, Article 9 of the Regulations on the working policies for public school teachers issued together with the Circular 28/2009/TT-BGDDT (amended by Clause 9, Article 1 Circular 15/2017/TT-BGDDT):

Regulations on Reducing Teaching Workload for Teachers Concurrently Holding Positions in Party, Union, and Other Organizations within the School

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2. Teachers concurrently holding positions as secretary or deputy secretary of the school youth union are entitled to benefits and policies as per the Decision No. 13/2013/QD-TTg dated February 6, 2013, of the Prime Minister on policies for officials of the Ho Chi Minh Communist Youth Union, the Vietnam Students Association at educational institutions and vocational training centers.

3. Teachers concurrently holding positions as president or secretary of the school council are entitled to a reduction of 2 periods per week.

4. Teachers concurrently serving as head of the school’s inspection committee are entitled to a reduction of 2 periods per week.

5. To ensure teaching quality and work quality, each teacher may not hold more than two positions concurrently and will benefit from the policy reducing the workload of the position with the highest deduction in periods.

Therefore, a lower secondary school teacher currently serving as a public employee, a physical education teacher, and holding the chairman position of the Trade Union, while also being a head of physical education is still compliant, because the chairman of the trade union is a position, whereas the head of physical education is a professional task and is not counted.

Can a lower secondary school teacher in Vietnam simultaneously hold two professional positions and the role of Trade Union Chairman?​ (Image from the Internet)

Does time spent on further training count towards a lower secondary school teacher’s workload in Vietnam?

Based on point b, clause 2, Article 5 of the Regulations on the working policies for public school teachers issued with Circular 28/2009/TT-BGDDT:

Working Time, Annual Leave Time

1. The working time of primary school teachers in the academic year is 42 weeks, in which:

a) 35 weeks are dedicated to teaching and educational activities according to the planned academic year schedule.

b) 05 weeks are allotted for further training and skill enhancement.

c) 01 week is for preparing for the new academic year.

d) 01 week is for summarizing the academic year.

2. The working time of secondary and high school teachers in the academic year is 42 weeks, in which:

a) 37 weeks are dedicated to teaching and educational activities according to the planned academic year schedule.

b) 03 weeks are allotted for further training and skill enhancement.

c) 01 week is for preparing for the new academic year.

d) 01 week is for summarizing the academic year.

The working time for lower secondary and high school teachers in the academic year is 42 weeks, in which 03 weeks are for further training and skill enhancement. Therefore, it is included in the working time for lower secondary school teachers as per the regulations.

Is it the duty of a homeroom teacher to propose awards and discipline for students in Vietnam?

According to clause 3, Article 4 of Circular 28/2009/TT-BGDDT:

Duties of Homeroom Teachers

In addition to the duties specified for teachers in Article 3 of this Regulation, homeroom teachers have the following duties:

1. Understand and comprehend students in the class in all aspects to adopt educational measures specific to the individuals aimed at promoting the progress of both individual students and the entire class;

2. Collaborate closely with students' families and actively cooperate with subject teachers, the Ho Chi Minh Communist Youth Union, the Young Pioneer Organization of Ho Chi Minh, relevant associations, and social organizations involved in educating students in the homeroom class;

3. Evaluate, assess, and rank students at the end of each term and academic year, propose awards and disciplinary actions for students, propose the list of students promoted to the next grade, those needing reassessment or extra training on conduct during summer break, those who need to repeat the grade, and finalize the recording in student grade books and records;

4. Participate in guiding collective activities, and educational and disciplinary activities for students organized by the school;

5. Report periodically or unexpectedly on the class situation to the Principal.

Therefore, one of the duties of a homeroom teacher is to propose awards and disciplinary actions for students, propose student promotion lists, those needing reassessment or extra conduct training during summer break, those repeating a grade, and complete the recording in student grade books and records.