Observation (CEACR) - adopted 2021, published 110th ILC session (2022)

Equal Remuneration Convention, 1951 (No. 100) - Viet Nam (Ratification: 1997)

Articles 1–4 of the Convention. Assessing and addressing the gender wage gap. Previously, the Committee requested the Government to indicate how the measures adopted under the National Strategy on Gender Equality (2011–20) have an impact on reducing the persistent gender wage gap and to provide specific information on any measures taken or envisaged to address the underlying causes. The Committee also requested the Government to collect and provide more specific statistical data, disaggregated by sex, on the distribution of men and women in different sectors of economic activity, occupational categories and positions and their corresponding earnings in both the private and public sectors. The Committee notes the information provided by the Government in its report on the measures adopted under the National Strategy on Gender Equality (2011–20), including: the promulgation of legal texts containing provisions on gender equality; the implementation of a ratio of male/female employment which has facilitated a relatively balanced gender distribution in the labour force with 52.7 per cent of men and 47.3 per cent of women, according to data from the 2019 Population and Housing Census; and support for woman-owned enterprises or business start-ups. In this regard, the Committee notes that, based on the information on business registration contained in the National Database of Business Registration, as of October 2019, there were 285,689 enterprises owned by women, accounting for 24 per cent of the total number of enterprises in the country. The highest number of enterprises owned by women is found in the field of trade and services (75 per cent), followed by construction (12 per cent), industry (7 per cent) and agriculture/forestry/fisheries (7 per cent). The Government also refers to the measures adopted to promote greater access of women to vocational training, including the scheme on “Support for women in vocational training and employment”, which includes the provision of tuition fees and loans to promote self-employment. The Government further reports that in the period 2011–20, women accounted for 52 per cent of customer loans and for 54 per cent of total lending by the Bank for Social Policies.

Concerning the gender wage gap, the Committee notes the Government’s indication that the gap has tended to widen. In 2019, the average monthly salary of male salaried workers was VND 6,183 million/month, compared to VND 5,446 million/month for women. The Government indicates that the gender wage gap is related to the average number of working hours of men and women. According to the 2018 Labour and Employment Survey report of the General Statistics Office, about 42.7 per cent of workers work 40–48 hours/week and the proportion of men working more than 48 hours/week is higher (38.4 per cent) than women (31.8 per cent). The Government also indicates that in almost all sectors of the economy the average monthly salary of women is lower than that of men. However, in various occupations with a high proportion of women who have technical qualifications similar to men, notably office assistance and sales, there is almost no gender wage gap. Noting the above information, the Committee invites the Government to step up its efforts to address the underlying causes of the persistent gender wage gap, including measures aimed at promoting women’s access to a greater range of training opportunities and jobs and to higher level positions, as well as measures to encourage men and women to share career and family responsibilities more equally. The Committee also requests the Government to provide statistical information, disaggregated by sex, on the distribution of men and women in different sectors of economic activity, occupational categories and positions, and their corresponding earnings in both the private and public sectors.

The Committee is raising other points in a request addressed directly to the Government.