Can an employee who is sentenced to imprisonment but eligible for suspension receive severance allowance in Vietnam?

Can an employee who is sentenced to imprisonment but eligible for suspension receive severance allowance in Vietnam?

Pursuant to Clause 1, Article 46 of the 2019 Labor Code, there are regulations on persons receiving severance allowance as follows:

1. In case an employment contract is terminated as prescribed in Clauses 1, 2, 3, 4, 6, 7, 9 and 10, Article 34 of this Code, the employer is responsible for paying severance allowance to the employee who has worked on a regular basis for a period of at least 12 months. Each year of work will be worth half a month’s salary, except for the cases in which the employee is entitled to receive retirement pension as prescribed by social insurance laws, and the cases specified in Point e Clause 1 Article 36 of this Labor Code.

Pursuant to Clause 4, Clause 8, Article 34 of the Labor Code 2019 has the following provisions:

4. The employee is sentenced to imprisonment without being eligible for suspension or release as prescribed in Clause 5 Article 328 of the Criminal Procedure Code, capital punishment or is prohibited from performing the work stated in the employment contract by an effective verdict or judgment of the court.

8. The employee is dismissed for disciplinary reasons.

According to this Article, your husband was sentenced to imprisonment but eligible for suspension and was disciplined for disciplinary reasons, so he is not eligible for severance allowance in Vietnam.

What are regulations on qualified period of work as the basis for calculation of severance allowance in Vietnam?

Pursuant to Clause 2, Article 46 of the 2019 Labor Code, on qualified period of work as the basis for calculation of severance allowance as follows:

2. The qualified period of work as the basis for calculation of severance allowance shall be the total period during which the employee actually worked for the employer minus the period over which the employee participated in the unemployment insurance in accordance with unemployment insurance laws and the period for which severance allowance or redundancy allowance has been paid by the employer.

According to Clause 3, Article 8 of Decree 145/2020/ND-CP stipulates qualified period of work as the basis for calculation of severance allowance as follows:

3. The employment period as the basis for calculation of severance allowance or redundancy allowance is the total period over which the employee has worked for the employer in reality (hereinafter referred to as “actual work period”) minus (-) the period over which the employee participates in unemployment insurance and the period over which the employer pays severance allowance or redundancy allowance. Where:

a) The actual work period includes: actual work period; probation period; employer-provided training period; sick leave and maternal leave according to social insurance laws; paid recovery period after an occupational accident or disease according to occupational hygiene and safety laws; paid leave period for fulfillment of citizen’s duties; work suspension period through no fault of the employee; weekly breaks prescribed in Article 111, paid leave prescribed in Article 112, Article 113, Article 114, Clause 1 Article 115; period over which the employee has to perform duties of the employee representative organization prescribed in Clause 2 and Clause 3 Article 176; and work suspension period prescribed in Article 128 of the Labor Code.

b) The period over which the employee participates in unemployment insurance includes: the period over which the employee participates in unemployment insurance and the period over which participation in unemployment insurance is not mandatory but the employer has paid in addition to salary an extra amount equal to the unemployment insurance premium according to labor and unemployment insurance laws.

c) The work period as the basis for calculation of severance allowance or redundancy allowance shall be expressed as years (full 12 months); If the number of months of an incomplete year is 06 months or less, it will be considered ½ year; if the number of months of an incomplete year is more than 06 months, it will be considered 01 year.

Best Regards!