Vietnam: May the head of the human resources department conclude the employment contracts with employees?

According to Clause 3, Article 18 of the Labor Code 2019 on competence to conclude employment contracts in Vietnam:

The person who concludes the employment contract on the employer’s side shall be:

- The legal representative of the enterprise or an authorized person as prescribed by law;

- The head of the organization that is a juridical person, or an authorized person as prescribed by law;

- The representative of the household, artels or an organization that is not a juridical person, or an authorized person as prescribed by law;

- The individual who directly hires the employee.

Thus, under the above regulations, the legal representative of the enterprise in Vietnam has the competence to conclude employment contracts. However, if the director of your company, who is the legal representative, is currently not present at the company, he/she can authorize you to conclude the employment contracts to ensure proper compliance.

Respectfully!