Another
trade union approach to the country, its trade unions and its garment and
footwear industries (this time by means of MANGO suppliers)
Translation of the report in Spanish found in:
Index
1. Objectives of this new trip to Vietnam, the second
this year
2.
The factories
visited, characteristics and working conditions
3.
Trade unions in
Vietnamese factories
4.
A business point of
view
5.
An interesting
article
6.
Some conclusions
1.-
Objectives of this new trip to Vietnam, the second this year
Starting in
September 2009, this was our sixth trade union trip to Vietnam, the second this
year (2016). In April, we went to Ho Chi Ming City for the creation of the
South Trade Union Network
of Inditex suppliers. This new trip had two objectives. On the one hand,
visiting factories that supply MANGO, linked with the work carried out on other
occasions,
for another trade union inspection and to monitor the country’s garment and
footwear industry, particularly the factories that supply Spanish brands.
And on the other hand, our aim was to create the National Trade Union Network
of Inditex suppliers,
after the meetings we had previously held in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City to
establish the North and South Trade Union Networks.
The trade union
delegation was made up of Isidor Boix and Víctor Garrido (in charge of GFAs and
CSR at CCOO-Industry, IndustriALL Global Union coordinators for the application
of the Framework Agreement with Inditex). In the end, unlike other occasions, a
representation of Vietnam’s trade unions (VGCL) was not able to accompany us as
originally planned. We mention this to highlight the difference with China’s
official trade unions, in relation to our initiatives of trade union approach
to the industry in countries that supply Spanish brands and the application
therein of the employers’ CSR commitments. Mango’s business delegation was made
up of Beatriz Bayo and Laura Guiu, Director and Vice-Director of Mango’s CSR
Department, along with Mai Phuong, a Vietnamese auditor that works with Mango.
In relation to the
country’s economic and social reality, we would like to cite our previous
reports, along with some more recent figures that are enlightening: GDP per
capita in 2015 was € 1,882, which amounts to a 22% increase compared to 2014,
and a 235% increase compared to 2005.
2.- The factories visited, characteristics and working
conditions
We visited 4
factories in the region, 2 garment ones and 2 footwear ones. Three had
Vietnamese capital (the 2 clothing factories and a footwear one, which
subcontracts production from a Taiwanese factory) and one (a footwear factory)
with Chinese-Taiwanese capital. The 2 garment factories belong to large
Vietnamese business groups, one of which has 25 factories with 30,000 workers.
One of the factories with Vietnamese capital, the footwear one, had 28% public
capital (which we were told does not intervene in the factory’s management).
They all work exclusively for exports, producing articles for European and
American brands, some of which, particularly in the case of footwear, are top
of the range. Their clients also include Spain’s Inditex and El Corte Inglés.
The percentage of production for Mango in the factories we visited ranged from
5% to 40%. The machinery used was generally Chinese, Japanese or German, and
the raw materials were mainly from China, and from Indonesia in some cases.
We also saw that
some of Vietnam’s garment production has evolved, with “basic” articles being
displaced towards other countries with lower costs, generally in the same
region. One of the factories specialises in the production of men’s suits.
Prior to our
visits, MANGO provided us with the latest audits carried out in the different
factories. This enabled us to see that some of the detected problems had been
solved and others were being dealt with, although some of the deadlines indicated
in the audits had not been met. It also highlighted once again the limitations
of the business auditing system, if it is not accompanied by sufficient trade
union intervention in the company.
The main figures
regarding working conditions are shown below:
2.1.- Hiring and characteristics of the workforce
·
In all the factories we visited, as in 2015, we
verified the correct application of the hiring system in relation to the
maximum number of temporary contracts, according to which the third contract
should be permanent. However, in our visits before 2015, we found an endless
succession of 1-year contracts in most factories. One factory still applied a
3-month trial period for operators, instead of the maximum of 1 month, which in
fact concealed another irregularity by not complying with compulsory
registration with Social Security.
·
The number of workers in all the factories we visited
ranged from 200 to 800, although some, as indicated above, belong to important
business groups (of up to 25 factories with 30,000 workers). The proportion of
women varies from 60% to 80%, without noticeable differences between the
garment and footwear industries.
·
Staff turnover in the garment industry seems to have
decreased, while it ranges from 30% to 50% annually in the footwear industry,
probably due to harder working and professional conditions, and longer
workdays. In all cases, workers seem to give up their jobs entirely at their
own initiative. A fair number of workers that leave return to the same factory
after a short or long period due to different reasons (professional, family, ...).
One of the workers we interviewed told us that he came to work in one of the
factories “because they pay Social Security.”
·
Absenteeism is also higher in the footwear industry.
It is not clear whether this is due to the working conditions and if it is the
first step towards leaving the factory for this or other reasons.
2.2.- Wages
·
The legal minimum wage ranges from 3,100,000 to
3,950,000 Dongs (122
to 156 euros) per month, in addition to two compulsory bonuses (hazardous pay
and toxicity) of 7% (for everyone) and 5% (highly generalised).
·
With overtime, generally 20 to 30 hours per month
(except in one factory referred to below), the factory salary ranges from 230
to 340 euros per month, including different bonuses for productivity,
attendance, …
·
In some cases, production workers are paid by the job
with a formula that guarantees that they receive at least the legal minimum
wage (by means of a bonus if necessary). However, this formula guaranteeing the
legal minimum may be deceptive due to remuneration by the job and/or working
overtime (which could mean that the legal minimum is not attained by working
what should be considered an “ordinary workday”). This is also an important
problem during trial periods (which may last for up to 3 months and affect a
significant part of the workforce, in the case of high staff turnover).
·
The line manager or “supervisor” earns about 400 euros
per month and the factory manager € 800, with the largest salary in the factory
reaching up to 2,000 euros, according to official wage lists, which may differ
from the real situation, especially in factories that still pay in cash.
·
Some factories have seniority bonuses of around 5 to 7
euros per month after the second year, and “attendance” bonuses ranging from 10
to 20 euros monthly.
·
There may be other wage bonuses, such as the monthly
3-€uro “transport” bonus in one factory. Another factory has a monthly bonus
ranging from 4 to 8 euros, according to seniority, to “help to pay for mobile
phone use.”
·
Wages are paid in cash in two of the companies, and in
one of them several of the workers we interviewed indicated net remuneration
higher than what appeared in the wage list.
·
Two of the factories pay a 13th monthly
salary, ranging from half to 1.3 times the monthly average. One factory pays an
annual bonus of up to two monthly salaries, the amount of which per worker is
decided by the company management.
·
In some factories, workers bring their own lunch (in
one factory, they eat at their work stations or outside the factory if it is
not raining). Other factories have a canteen, one factory offers free lunch for
workers, another charges 0.06 euros, claiming that the company pays a € 0.70
subsidy per meal.
2.3.- Working time
·
As in all southeast Asia, there is a problem with long
workdays. Vietnamese legislation establishes a maximum of 30 hours overtime per
month and 200 per year, which, by means of administrative authorisation, may
reach up to 300 (which is, in fact, considered the generally applied rule). In
3 of the 4 factories, this level of maximum overtime is indicated by the sign
in/sign out sheet. In the case of the fourth factory, which also apparently kept
the same record, we saw that the collective lists did not coincide with the
individual documents and verbal explanations; a fair number of employees
worked, for some or quite a few months, up to 60 hours of overtime per month,
and some up to 90 hours (triple the monthly legal maximum and well above the
annual maximum). We also detected that this factory worked some Sundays,
without clear indication of whether this was subsequently compensated for by
means of rest days.
·
As in all countries of the world, overtime is
“voluntary” according to legislation but, as in almost all countries, it is
viewed as obligatory whenever the company indicates such. What does vary is the
worker’s capacity for not working overtime. Almost all the factories indicated
that you have to “ask for permission” if you do not want to stay on, without
too much justification, and it is almost always granted. We have seen progress
in this regard too.
·
The volume of overtime is, in fact, one of the main
problems in the region, particularly in China and, it would seem, in the
footwear industry. This undoubtedly requires a global trade union initiative,
aimed at involving leading brands in the fashion industry, as well as the
effective commitment of local trade unions and the workers’ representatives in
the workplace. However, this may prove to be difficult in practice, either due
to trade union weakness (as in India) or their use as instruments of power
(China). Vietnam could, however, be a sphere of possible trade union
participation in the project, with a specific global approach including
proposals for the improvement of vocational training, in the case of both
workers and managers, of work organisation, etc.
2.4.- Health and Safety
·
All the factories, in conjunction with the nursing
service, carry out medical check-ups twice a year in the entire workforce.
·
In all of them, the female workers explained that the
legal disposition regarding a half-hour daily break during menstruation is
fulfilled, after notifying the line manageress so that she can organise such
breaks.
·
We observed generalised problems in the working
conditions with regard to heat and ventilation, as well as, in the case of
footwear factories, the atmosphere, and in one factory in relation to the
storage of chemicals.
·
When we asked about industrial “accidents,” the reply
was always negative, although sometimes the workers mentioned being “pricked”
by a needle.
·
In relation to matters of hygiene, in some factories
we observed an excessive lack of order in handling waste and its accumulation
near work stations.
3.- Trade unions in Vietnamese factories
The trade union
organisation and activity that we observed in the visited factories did not
differ substantially from what we saw in previous visits. In this regard,
during our visit in 2015, we were able to talk at length (and to coincide in
the detected problems) with the management of the country’s General
Confederation of Labour (VGCL), particularly in relation to working conditions
(overtime) and trade union representation in the factories (a fair number of
business managers occupy posts of trade union management), as well as the
scarce relevance of the current agreements, both those considered “company
agreements” and the sectorial agreement in the textile-garment industry. We
observed the following main elements on this occasion:
·
Declared union membership ranges from 80 to 100 % of
the workforce, in relation to which we have to take into account the formal
freedom of unionisation as regards becoming a member or not. However, we came
across one worker who said that she was not a union member because she was not
interested in the matter, but her payslip included a deduction for union dues.
On the other hand, an absurd situation still exists in which union membership
is not allowed during the trial period, which is compounded by the duration of
such and the possible volume of the workforce that is affected.
·
Individual dues ranged from 0.60 to 1.40 euros per
month in 3 of the factories, and amounted to 3 euros every 3 months in another.
In one factory (the latter one), they are payed directly by workers to the
production line’s union representative; in the other 3, dues are deducted from
the salary.
·
In addition to individual union dues, companies pay
the trade union 2% of the payroll, which evidently accounts for the substantial
part of trade union finances.
·
Trade union funds are divided between territorial
trade union structures and trade union (welfare) activities in the company. The
distribution between both items seems to be 60-40, or 40-60, but it was
difficult to receive specific figures from the company trade union leaders that
we interviewed.
·
The election of the company trade union management is
governed by complicated procedures and occasionally by a reduced electoral
body, whose explanation does not really coincide among the different companies
(on one occasion, it took us almost an hour to specify it to some extent). It
can be summarised by 3 electoral procedures: one for electing the candidates, another
for electing those who then vote, from among these, for the company trade union
management and a third procedure for carrying out this election. In all of
them, we detected an indirect, and sometimes direct, influence from the company
management. However, it is worth mentioning here what we observed in other
visits, namely a feeling of class among company trade union representatives;
although this has probably not yet become generalised, it is now possible in
the current circumstances and is an important point to be taken into account
for the development of real trade unionism in the future.
·
Such a complex procedure (most of the workers we
interviewed were unaware of or did not remember all the details of it) almost
always results (as was the case in all the companies we visited on this
occasion) in the posts of company trade union President and Vice-President
being occupied by business managers (production manager, factory manager,
personnel manager, …). In the meeting to establish the National Trade Union
Network of Inditex suppliers we saw, however, that this negative reality does
not affect all companies, and the persons that best represented their work
colleagues played an essential role, regardless of their proportion in the
meeting itself.
·
Some of the business managers that were also
(formally) trade union leaders, tried to justify this irregularity by
highlighting the advantage of “knowing well” both sides of the interests at
stake. They almost reached the point of justifying this strange negotiation
with themselves in order to settle inevitable labour tensions.
·
Trade union activity in the factories is mainly
centred on welfare (economic aid, care for the sick, with a paternalistic view
of such activity –“looking after the workers”–, …), some leisure activities,
anniversary presents, … In a few cases, they insinuated that they also speak
about salaries and working conditions, apart from the quality of the food or
excessive working temperatures.
·
In all the factories, the business management claimed
to have a collective agreement, although some workers were not aware of it and
most of them could not explain how it affected them. On the other hand, this is
understandable in view of the limited effect of such “agreements” on the
workers’ actual working conditions and salary.
·
The “negotiation” procedure involved, in one of the companies,
the trade union representatives obtaining the workers’ opinions beforehand; in
other cases, it had to do with a direct proposal from the personnel department
that was submitted to the company trade union for its consideration. There may
be some prior conversations between the business and trade union managements,
with the confusion resulting from their make-up. The business proposal is
formally presented to a trade union “Congress” that is entitled to reject it,
but all the companies told us that this has never happened. In one company, the
final business proposal was signed by the workers (“all of them,” we were told)
as an expression of consent.
·
These “agreements” incorporate the main legal
regulations regarding labour relations and add some company particularities,
such as the wage scale (the bonuses to be added to the legal minimum), but
without specifying their amounts. These are decided annually by the business
management, without any formal negotiation.
·
As an example of the limited effect of the so-called
agreements, one worker that had been in the company for 11 years claimed that
she did not even know what an “agreement” was.
·
In one company, a document on the notice board caught
our attention regarding an agreement between the company trade union and the
factory’s “youth” organisation on productivity objectives. We were told that
these were “communist youths” that make up approximately 15% of the workforce,
but that the indicated objectives had not yet been reached. This could,
however, indicate a line of political initiative (of disputed interest,
particularly due to the lack of trade union initiative) aimed at influencing
matters regarding the necessary improvement of work organisation, productivity.
These are matters that, with a view to appropriate labour relations, and
probably with a view to their efficiency, cannot be limited to the workers’
subjective stimulus.
·
On this occasion, all the factories claimed that they
had never had any labour disputes. In one, however, they told us about a strike
in 2012 when the workers felt that they were not being paid properly for
overtime. Seemingly, they were convinced by being presented with information
indicating that the minimum wage in their region was lower than that of the
company with which they had compared themselves. However, this situation
highlights a series of relations among workers of different companies that are
beyond the formal official mechanisms. In another factory they told us about a
half-day strike, which was generalised in their area, as a protest over “Chinese
aggression” against disputed islands in the South China Sea.
4.- A business point of view
In one of the
companies we visited, a business manager shared several considerations
regarding the country’s working conditions and salaries. Our notes produced the
following main points from the employer’s opinion:
·
Salaries have been rising more than inflation for
years. One wonders whether things can continue like this.
·
These larger increases are forecast to continue until
2018. By then, salaries should be at a level that satisfies the workers’ needs
and, from then on, wage increases should be in line with inflation.
·
Prices in the global market of Vietnam’s productions
are not rising. We will therefore have to increase work productivity. Otherwise
production will move to areas with lower wages, although other costs should be
taken into account, such as taxes, rents, energy, …
When asked about
his own experience in this regard, he gave us the following figures:
·
Between the year 2000 and this year, 2016, in 16 years
the minimum wage has increased 12 fold, the workforce has decreased by 40% and
the value of the obtained production has doubled.
An interesting
business point of view that should be contrasted with the elements of labour
relations, trade unionism, … that we highlight in this report.
5.- An interesting article
Coinciding with our
stay in Vietnam, the official English-language newspaper “Vietnam News” of
November 5 published an article entitled “Measures needed to prevent labour
disputes.” Some paragraphs are quoted below:
“Labour disputes
kept increasing over the past years and became more complicated, demonstrating
a need for adjustment of… relations between workers and employers… The country
recorded 3,146 strikes… 132 strikes were reported during the first six months
of this year… A representative of the ministry’s Department of Legal Affairs
said that disputes… are inevitable because of on-going changes in the labour
market.”
He then indicated
the following, after referring to several disputes and strikes in relation to “salary,
working hours, and food safety and hygiene”:
“But
the strikes that resulted did not follow legal processes… This shows that some
legal regulations were ineffective or not effective enough… The law should be
adjusted to increase mechanisms related to dialogues and negotiations between
employees and employers…”
The article,
however, did not deal with what is probably the main problem: how to carry out
such “dialogues and negotiations” and with which organisations representing the
interests at stake.
6.- Some conclusions
Our observations
during our factory visits point to some ideas for the immediate future. In
relation to working conditions, the main matter is undoubtedly working time. We
have previously discussed this at length in relation to the opportunity of a
particular effort in Vietnam, with the necessary involvement of leading brands,
global and Vietnamese trade unions, with evident possibilities of advancing due
to its particular characteristics. With a joint project since this is a
generalised problem, and also with specific approaches in extreme cases.
All of this
underlines, on the other hand, the importance of the highlighted trade union
matters. It is undoubtedly easy to reach some conclusions in this regard,
contrasting the considerations in the aforementioned “Vietnam News” article
with what we have observed in this and previous trips. It is interesting, in
this regard, that the newspaper recognises the need for “adjustment of..
regulations.” However, it is questionable whether the main problem is “procedures”
of “dialogues and negotiations,” without first identifying those who should dialogue
and negotiate, i.e. if those in charge of this indispensable task are suitably
representative. This objective will be difficult to fulfil if the “trade union
leaders” are also personnel or factory managers.
What we observed in
the factories we visited shows the need for an in-depth review of the
regulations governing trade union activity, in order to guarantee the suitable
election of trade union representatives, which is a key element in this regard.
We have to accept that in companies, despite the common interest in their
success, there exist contradictory interests in relation to salary, working
conditions, …, and this requires effective representatives, who enjoy the trust
of those whom they represent, differentiated between company and workers, who
can dialogue, negotiate. And reach efficient agreements, with the necessary
trust of those whom they represent, that can impact the quality and
productivity of the work.
Any possible
pessimism resulting from these observations, in relation to the factories we
visited, is offset by the aforementioned sensitivity in this regard on the part
of VGCL leaders. Also by some positive symptoms detected in other visits and,
above all, by those indicated in the meeting to create the National Trade Union
Network of Inditex’s supplier factories, and the work plan established therein,
whose report is cited above. In addition, there are also the possible
consequences of what has become a constant feature in recent years, namely the relationship that is being established between
the Vietnam General Confederation of Labour (VGCL) and international trade
unionism, the ITUC and, in our sphere, IndustriALL Global Union. We can
undoubtedly vouch, by means of these pages, for the Vietnamese trade unions’
complete willingness to cooperate in dealing with the next chapter, on the part
of the ITUC, IndustriALL Global Union and, of course, ourselves personally.
December
2016
Isidor Boix
Víctor Garrido
International Secretariat of CCOO Industry
Coordination of IndustriALL Global Union for the Global Framework
Agreement with INDITEX
In order to
contextualise the significance of these figures, it is worth mentioning that
the same source (“Macro Data”) indicates the following GDP per capita figures
for 2015: 23,200 euros for Spain, € 7,337 for China and € 1,044 for Cambodia.
