Addition of Many Preferential Policies for Enterprises Employing a Large Number of Female Workers

Due to the distinct mental, physical characteristics, and social roles of women, labor laws have specific regulations to best protect the interests of female workers. The Draft report summarizing and evaluating three years of implementation of the Labor Code 2012 has analyzed and assessed the strengths and limitations after three years of enforcing the Labor Code concerning the regulations specific to female workers.

According to the provisions of the current Labor Code, female workers have been granted several additional rights, such as:

- Maternity leave policies as stipulated by the social insurance law for six months both before and after childbirth, with the possibility for female workers to take leave up to two months before delivery;- The right to return to work earlier if it does not adversely affect their health;- In cases where female workers do not have their old jobs after giving birth, employers are required to arrange alternative work with a salary not lower than the pre-maternity leave salary;- In certain cases, female workers are entitled to benefits when taking leave to care for a sick child or undergoing procedures such as abortion, miscarriage, stillbirth, pathological abortion, etc.

In terms of compliance with labor laws, most enterprises have observed gender equality in recruitment, utilization, training, working hours, rest periods, wages; ensuring legal provisions on maternity protection for female workers, maternity leave, and job security after maternity leave; and not employing pregnant female workers from the seventh month or those nursing a child under 12 months of age to work night shifts, overtime, or travel far.

However, there are still some limitations in practice as follows:

- Some businesses limit the use of female labor due to increased business costs associated with implementing policies for female workers;- Restrooms and sanitary facilities for female workers do not meet legal standards, causing inconvenience for female employees;- A segment of female workers does not know how to stand up and protect their rights properly when their rights are violated;- Article 160 of the Labor Code on "Jobs prohibited from employing female workers," along with Circular 26/2013/TT-BLDTBXH issuing the "List of jobs that do not employ female workers" is not practical since in some specific working environments, men are also adversely affected in terms of reproductive functions. On the other hand, many women who have been working in the jobs listed in Circular 26/2013/TT-BLDTBXH for a long time find it difficult to get replacement jobs, and many continue to work in these jobs, leading to unprotected rights, affecting family economics, and potentially causing high unemployment.- Lack of specific guidance on the level of childcare and kindergarten cost support for female workers as stipulated in Clause 4, Article 154 of the Labor Code.

Through evaluating the strengths and limitations, the Ministry of Labor, Invalids, and Social Affairs has made recommendations and proposals to address the limitations, such as:

- Adjusting regulations appropriately for both male and female workers in specific working environments that negatively affect reproductive functions;- Introducing more preferential policies for recruiting female workers in enterprises and more incentives for enterprises employing a large number of female workers;- Providing additional guidance on the level of childcare and kindergarten cost support for female workers;- Adjusting the current regulation “pregnant from the seventh month” to specify the pregnancy week to ensure consistent application, as enterprises currently apply it starting from week 25, 26, or 27.

More details can be found in the Draft.

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