Vietnamese and Chinese labour regimes: On the road to divergence

China Journal

Volumn , Issue 40, 1998, Pages 172-197

  Chan, Anita ^a   Nørlund, Irene ^a  

^a NONE

Author keywords

[No Author keywords available]

Indexed keywords

ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT; INDUSTRIAL RELATIONS; INTERNATIONAL COMPARISON; LABOUR MARKET; TRADE UNION;

CHINA; VIETNAM;

EID: 0031659237     PISSN: 13249347     EISSN: None     Source Type: Journal    
DOI: 10.2307/2667458     Document Type: Article

References (136)

1. In the first four decades of Party rule, Chinese workers expressed mass dissatisfaction several times, but at none of these times did they turn to the union for assistance. During the Maoist period the contention was largely over political control rather than control over the labour process. In Vietnam during these same decades, the workers did not challenge the state in the same fashion because the nation's attention was focused on the war.
2. Thanks to Melinda Tria Kerkvliet for providing us with this information.
3. This information was obtained from a group interview we conducted with twenty trade union officials who were undergoing training in Denmark with the General Worker's Union in June 1995 (henceforth referred to as the 1995 Denmark interview).
4. Boris Kagarlitsky and Renfrey Clarke, "Russia's Trade Union Movement: Bureaucrats and Militants in the Epoch of Capitalist Restoration", Links, no.1, April-June 1994, pp.19-28. According to SID labour organizer Sten Pedersen, who has carried out training courses for many Eastern European unions since the collapse of communism in their countries, the former official unions in all these post-Communist countries have outlasted the new alternative unions. Even in Poland the former official union continues to have a much larger membership than Solidarity.
5. Elizabeth Perry, "Labour's Battle for Political Space: The Role of Worker Associations in Contemporary China", in Deborah Davis, Richard Kraus, Barry Naughton and Elizabeth Perry (eds), Urban Space in Contemporary China: The Potential for Autonomy and Community in Post-Mao China (Cambridge: University of Cambridge Press, 1995), pp.302-25. Also see Anita Chan, "Revolution or Corporatism? Workers and Trade Unions in Post-Mao China", Australian Journal of Chinese Affairs, no.29 (January 1993), pp.31-5.
6. Elizabeth Perry, "Labour's Battle for Political Space: The Role of Worker Associations in Contemporary China", in Deborah Davis, Richard Kraus, Barry Naughton and Elizabeth Perry (eds), Urban Space in Contemporary China: The Potential for Autonomy and Community in Post-Mao China (Cambridge: University of Cambridge Press, 1995), pp.302-25. Also see Anita Chan, "Revolution or Corporatism? Workers and Trade Unions in Post-Mao China", Australian Journal of Chinese Affairs, no.29 (January 1993), pp.31-5.
7. Gabriel Kolko, "Vietnam Since 1975: Winning a War and Losing the Peace", Journal of Contemporary Asia, vol.25, no.1 (1995), pp.4, 6.
8. Andrew Walder, Communist Neo-Traditionalism: Work and Authority in Chinese Industry (Berkeley: University of California Press, 1986), ch.6.
9. See Trinh Quang Quy, The Labour Movement in Vietnam (publisher unknown, 1970), pp.41, 117-18. We are grateful to Melinda Tria Kerkvliet for drawing our attention to this book.
10. See, for example, David Wurfel, "Doi Moi in Comparative Perspective", in William S. Turley and Mark Selden (eds), Reinventing Vietnamese Socialism: Doi Moi in Comparative Perspective (Boulder: Westview Press, 1993), p.47.
11. Andrew G. Walder and Gong Xiaoxia, "Workers in the Tiananmen Protests: The Politics of the Beijing Workers' Autonomous Federation", Australian Journal of Chinese Affairs, no.29 (June 1993), pp.1-29.
12. Japan Economic Newswire, 27 October 1994; Zhongguo tongji [China's statistics], no.1, 1996, p.27; and Reuters, Beijing, 23 June 1997.
13. Japan Economic Newswire, 27 October 1994; Zhongguo tongji [China's statistics], no.1, 1996, p.27; and Reuters, Beijing, 23 June 1997.
14. Japan Economic Newswire, 27 October 1994.
15. Zhongguo laodong bao [China labour news], 13 June 1996.
16. Gongren ribao [Workers' daily], 30 November 1995.
17. Nanfang gongbao [Southern workers' news], 29 April 1997.
18. Gongren ribao, 7 March 1996.
19. Tran Hoang Kim, Economy of Vietnam: Review and Statistics (Hanoi: Statistical Publishing House, 1994), p.146. The number for 1992 is a little higher (695,000). See Statistical Yearbook of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs 1993 (Hanoi: National Political Publishing House, 1994), p.45. Also see Dang Due Dam, Vietnam's Economy 1886-95 (Hanoi: Gioi Publishers, 1995). In Vietnamese statistics the industrial labour force is not divided into urban and rural. However, unlike China, very few of the state enterprises are located outside the cities.
20. Tran Hoang Kim, Economy of Vietnam: Review and Statistics (Hanoi: Statistical Publishing House, 1994), p.146. The number for 1992 is a little higher (695,000). See Statistical Yearbook of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs 1993 (Hanoi: National Political Publishing House, 1994), p.45. Also see Dang Due Dam, Vietnam's Economy 1886-95 (Hanoi: Gioi Publishers, 1995). In Vietnamese statistics the industrial labour force is not divided into urban and rural. However, unlike China, very few of the state enterprises are located outside the cities.
21. Tran Hoang Kim, Economy of Vietnam: Review and Statistics (Hanoi: Statistical Publishing House, 1994), p.146. The number for 1992 is a little higher (695,000). See Statistical Yearbook of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs 1993 (Hanoi: National Political Publishing House, 1994), p.45. Also see Dang Due Dam, Vietnam's Economy 1886-95 (Hanoi: Gioi Publishers, 1995). In Vietnamese statistics the industrial labour force is not divided into urban and rural. However, unlike China, very few of the state enterprises are located outside the cities.
22. Only 11-12 per cent of Vietnam's workforce was employed in the industrial sector, of which 30 per cent worked in the central state sector as of 1985. See Melanie Beresford, "The North Vietnamese State-Owned Industrial Sector: Continuity and Change", The Journal of Communist Studies and Transition Politics, vol.11, no.1 (March 1995) p.56. By 1993 this had dropped to a little over 10 per cent of the manufacturing labour force. See Statistical Yearbook of Labour, 1993, p.45. Also see Irene Nørlund, "The Labour Market in Vietnam: Between State Incorporation and Autonomy", in J. D. Schmidt, Niels Fold and Jacques Hersh (eds), Social Change in Southeast Asia (Harlow: Addison Wesley Longman, 1998), pp.155-82.
23. Only 11-12 per cent of Vietnam's workforce was employed in the industrial sector, of which 30 per cent worked in the central state sector as of 1985. See Melanie Beresford, "The North Vietnamese State-Owned Industrial Sector: Continuity and Change", The Journal of Communist Studies and Transition Politics, vol.11, no.1 (March 1995) p.56. By 1993 this had dropped to a little over 10 per cent of the manufacturing labour force. See Statistical Yearbook of Labour, 1993, p.45. Also see Irene Nørlund, "The Labour Market in Vietnam: Between State Incorporation and Autonomy", in J. D. Schmidt, Niels Fold and Jacques Hersh (eds), Social Change in Southeast Asia (Harlow: Addison Wesley Longman, 1998), pp.155-82.
24. Only 11-12 per cent of Vietnam's workforce was employed in the industrial sector, of which 30 per cent worked in the central state sector as of 1985. See Melanie Beresford, "The North Vietnamese State-Owned Industrial Sector: Continuity and Change", The Journal of Communist Studies and Transition Politics, vol.11, no.1 (March 1995) p.56. By 1993 this had dropped to a little over 10 per cent of the manufacturing labour force. See Statistical Yearbook of Labour, 1993, p.45. Also see Irene Nørlund, "The Labour Market in Vietnam: Between State Incorporation and Autonomy", in J. D. Schmidt, Niels Fold and Jacques Hersh (eds), Social Change in Southeast Asia (Harlow: Addison Wesley Longman, 1998), pp.155-82.
25. Status of Labour - Employment in Vietnam (Hanoi: Ministry of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs, Statistical Publishing House, 1997), Table C3.3.0.01.
26. The figure can only be approximate. The 1993 data from the Ministry of Labour showed total unemployment of 8.3 million. In China, the registered unemployment rate is low, only about 3 per cent, but the number of workers who are not paid full wages or have to stay home is large, reaching 18 per cent of SOE workers. The situation in Vietnam is quite similar. Many workers continue to stay in the state enterprises even though they are employed only part-time or are without work. So long as they are not formally laid off they are counted as employed. In some cities this figure is as high as 20 per cent. In recent years, though, there has been a falling unemployment rate. See Statistical Yearbook, 1995 (Hanoi: General Statistical Office, 1996), p.39; Vietnam Economic Commentary and Analysis, no.6, 1994, p.29.
27. The figure can only be approximate. The 1993 data from the Ministry of Labour showed total unemployment of 8.3 million. In China, the registered unemployment rate is low, only about 3 per cent, but the number of workers who are not paid full wages or have to stay home is large, reaching 18 per cent of SOE workers. The situation in Vietnam is quite similar. Many workers continue to stay in the state enterprises even though they are employed only part-time or are without work. So long as they are not formally laid off they are counted as employed. In some cities this figure is as high as 20 per cent. In recent years, though, there has been a falling unemployment rate. See Statistical Yearbook, 1995 (Hanoi: General Statistical Office, 1996), p.39; Vietnam Economic Commentary and Analysis, no.6, 1994, p.29.
28. Vietnamese News, 14 May 1996, p.4. According to the Labour Survey of 1996, unemployment decreased considerably from 1994 to 1996, down to 4 per cent. Unemployment declined especially in the newly expanding cities and special economic zones, whereas it increased in other urban areas. Status of Labour - Employment in Vietnam, pp.66-7.
29. Vietnamese News, 14 May 1996, p.4. According to the Labour Survey of 1996, unemployment decreased considerably from 1994 to 1996, down to 4 per cent. Unemployment declined especially in the newly expanding cities and special economic zones, whereas it increased in other urban areas. Status of Labour - Employment in Vietnam, pp.66-7.
30. Vietnamese Investment Review, 24-30 October 1994, p.18.
31. Irene Nørlund, "Vietnamese Industry in Transition: Changes in the Textile Sector", in Irene Nørlund, Carolyn L. Gates and Vu Ca Dam (eds), Vietnam in a Changing World (Richmond: Curzon Press, 1995), p.138.
32. This information was gained from six weeks of visits to footwear factories in Shanghai and Beijing in 1995 and 1996. In addition, a series of interviews was conducted with a variety of government officials and trade union cadres whose work is related to the leather goods industry.
33. No government department has figures on the exact number of footwear factories in the country. Keen competition was felt by almost all of the factories visited. Even those which had been making steady yearly profits up till 1993 saw profits decline. In Vietnam, because of the competition from foreign goods, there is also a sense of "overproduction". See Norlund, "Vietnamese Industry in Transition", p.143.
34. Information from 1995 fieldwork in Beijing.
35. More often than not, in the older state enterprises the ratio of retirees to employees can be as high as 1:2. Since under the Chinese system the work unit itself has to support the entire range of welfare of its own staff and workers, this has become a heavy burden on financially troubled firms. The government's recent policy is to replace this system with an entirely new one whereby all welfare services are centralized at the city level, thus evening out welfare responsibilities among all enterprises. But state enterprises which are in the red lack the funds to participate in the new program, and thus remain trapped in a vicious cycle.
36. In the textile industry, for instance, state-sector workers have been made to work at very fast rates for long hours. See Zhao Minghua and Theo Nichols, "Management Control of Labour in State-Owned Enterprises: Cases from the Textile Industry", The China Journal, no.36 (July 1996), pp.1-21.
37. Dorothy Solinger, "The Chinese Work Unit and Transient Labor in the Transition from Socialism", Modern China, vol.21, no.2 (April 1995), pp.155-85. Our field research in Shanghai in 1995 also indicated that this is an increasing trend.
38. China Labour Bulletin [Hong Kong], no.3, May 1994, pp.8-9.
39. Globe and Mail [Canada], 18 July 1997; China Labour Bulletin, no.37, July/August 1997, pp.13-14.
40. Globe and Mail [Canada], 18 July 1997; China Labour Bulletin, no.37, July/August 1997, pp.13-14.
41. Anita Chan, "The Emerging Patterns of Industrial Relations in China and the Rise of Two New Labour Movements", China Information, vol.IX, no.4 (Spring 1995), p.58.
42. Institute of Labour Science and Social Affairs of the Ministry of Labour, July 1994.
43. Vietnamese Investment Review, 22-29 November 1993; 70 strikes were recorded in 1992-93. Also see "Vietnam Labour Law Fails to Halt Strikes" (Hanoi: Agence France Presse, 9 July 1995); and Vietnamese Trade Union, no.3, 1995, pp.27-8.
44. Vietnamese Investment Review, 22-29 November 1993; 70 strikes were recorded in 1992-93. Also see "Vietnam Labour Law Fails to Halt Strikes" (Hanoi: Agence France Presse, 9 July 1995); and Vietnamese Trade Union, no.3, 1995, pp.27-8.
45. Vietnamese Investment Review, 22-29 November 1993; 70 strikes were recorded in 1992-93. Also see "Vietnam Labour Law Fails to Halt Strikes" (Hanoi: Agence France Presse, 9 July 1995); and Vietnamese Trade Union, no.3, 1995, pp.27-8.
46. Communication from the Committee for the Defence of Workers' Rights in Vietnam, France and Associated Press, Hanoi, 25 September 1997, referring to a union inspection report in Vietnam.
47. According to a survey carried out by the Guangdong Provincial General Trade Union in 1994, 34.5 per cent of the workers interviewed said there was no extra pay for overtime work; and 32 per cent were paid below the minimum wage (Yuegang xinxi shibao [Guangdong-Hong Kong information newspaper], 2 April 1994). A survey in Vietnam revealed that 15 per cent of foreign-funded enterprises paid employees less than the official minimum wage of US$35 per month set for Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City (Vietnam Investment Review, 9-15 January 1995, p.25).
48. According to a survey carried out by the Guangdong Provincial General Trade Union in 1994, 34.5 per cent of the workers interviewed said there was no extra pay for overtime work; and 32 per cent were paid below the minimum wage (Yuegang xinxi shibao [Guangdong-Hong Kong information newspaper], 2 April 1994). A survey in Vietnam revealed that 15 per cent of foreign-funded enterprises paid employees less than the official minimum wage of US$35 per month set for Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City (Vietnam Investment Review, 9-15 January 1995, p.25).
49. For example, for violations of labour laws by Taiwanese and Korean-owned factories that make Nike shoes, see Lao dong [Labour], 19 November 1997; for violations by such factories in China, see the Asia Monitor Research Centre report, "Conditions of Workers in the Shoe Industry in China", November 1995. This does not apply in China and Vietnam to some of the large capital-intensive, high-tech enterprises that are owned by Western firms, which operate on a management philosophy that is softer on workers. See Anita Chan, "The Emerging Patterns", esp. pp.45-8.
50. For example, for violations of labour laws by Taiwanese and Korean-owned factories that make Nike shoes, see Lao dong [Labour], 19 November 1997; for violations by such factories in China, see the Asia Monitor Research Centre report, "Conditions of Workers in the Shoe Industry in China", November 1995. This does not apply in China and Vietnam to some of the large capital-intensive, high-tech enterprises that are owned by Western firms, which operate on a management philosophy that is softer on workers. See Anita Chan, "The Emerging Patterns", esp. pp.45-8.
51. For example, for violations of labour laws by Taiwanese and Korean-owned factories that make Nike shoes, see Lao dong [Labour], 19 November 1997; for violations by such factories in China, see the Asia Monitor Research Centre report, "Conditions of Workers in the Shoe Industry in China", November 1995. This does not apply in China and Vietnam to some of the large capital-intensive, high-tech enterprises that are owned by Western firms, which operate on a management philosophy that is softer on workers. See Anita Chan, "The Emerging Patterns", esp. pp.45-8.
52. The information on China comes from interviews in 1994 at Beijing's ACFTU headquarters; information on Vietnam came from the Denmark interviews of 1995. Talks with trade unionists from Indonesia and with Australian business consultants lend support to this observation, as does a report in the Far Eastern Economic Review, 22 August 1996, p.63.
53. Taiwanese capital began to flow into Vietnam earlier than from other countries. Taiwan was the major investor in Vietnam until 1997, when Singapore became the largest, followed by Taiwan, Hong Kong, Japan and South Korea. The largest investor in the mainland of China is Hong Kong, followed by Taiwan.
54. Gongren ribao, 21 May 1996, p.5.
55. Beijing Review, vol.38, no.20 (15-21 May 1995), p. 18. The reporting on labour disturbances in foreign-funded firms has become more forthright. In the 1980s the Party specifically banned such news from the press (Information from a Shanghai researcher on labour issues).
56. Gongren ribao, 11 November 1993. Two cases were cited in this article. In one, a manager in a garment factory hired a police officer to be deputy manager with the express purpose of controlling the workers. When the workers could no longer stand the protracted hours of overtime work, several of them launched a protest. The policeman-turned-manager first fired the "trouble-makers", then got his colleagues in the police station to arrest them. They were released after the intervention of the local union. Another case involved a foreign manager who, just before firing a batch of workers, called in the police. As each of the names of the unfortunate workers was called, they were "accompanied" to the gate by a policeman. In another case, when some workers started complaining after being owed wages for 7-8 months, police were sent into the dormitory to beat up the workers' representatives (Zhuhai laodong bao [Zhuhai labour news], 24 October 1994). The use of police and private security guards with connections to the police is very prevalent in south China (based on field findings in January 1996). One Taiwanese joint-venture firm in south China employed 100 security guards for only 2,700 workers (Gongren ribao, 17 April 1996, p.7).
57. Gongren ribao, 11 November 1993. Two cases were cited in this article. In one, a manager in a garment factory hired a police officer to be deputy manager with the express purpose of controlling the workers. When the workers could no longer stand the protracted hours of overtime work, several of them launched a protest. The policeman-turned-manager first fired the "trouble-makers", then got his colleagues in the police station to arrest them. They were released after the intervention of the local union. Another case involved a foreign manager who, just before firing a batch of workers, called in the police. As each of the names of the unfortunate workers was called, they were "accompanied" to the gate by a policeman. In another case, when some workers started complaining after being owed wages for 7-8 months, police were sent into the dormitory to beat up the workers' representatives (Zhuhai laodong bao [Zhuhai labour news], 24 October 1994). The use of police and private security guards with connections to the police is very prevalent in south China (based on field findings in January 1996). One Taiwanese joint-venture firm in south China employed 100 security guards for only 2,700 workers (Gongren ribao, 17 April 1996, p.7).
58. Gongren ribao, 11 November 1993. Two cases were cited in this article. In one, a manager in a garment factory hired a police officer to be deputy manager with the express purpose of controlling the workers. When the workers could no longer stand the protracted hours of overtime work, several of them launched a protest. The policeman-turned-manager first fired the "trouble-makers", then got his colleagues in the police station to arrest them. They were released after the intervention of the local union. Another case involved a foreign manager who, just before firing a batch of workers, called in the police. As each of the names of the unfortunate workers was called, they were "accompanied" to the gate by a policeman. In another case, when some workers started complaining after being owed wages for 7-8 months, police were sent into the dormitory to beat up the workers' representatives (Zhuhai laodong bao [Zhuhai labour news], 24 October 1994). The use of police and private security guards with connections to the police is very prevalent in south China (based on field findings in January 1996). One Taiwanese joint-venture firm in south China employed 100 security guards for only 2,700 workers (Gongren ribao, 17 April 1996, p.7).
59. Zhongyang ribao [Central daily news, Taiwan], 31 March 1995. This case was widely publicized in the Taiwan press as a negative example of how uncontrollably wild PRC workers could become. What is unusual about this incident is that the rebellion was led by the trade union chair of the enterprise. An English translation of this report appears in Chinese Sociology and Anthropology, vol.30, no.4 (Summer 1998), pp.83-6.
60. Zhongyang ribao [Central daily news, Taiwan], 31 March 1995. This case was widely publicized in the Taiwan press as a negative example of how uncontrollably wild PRC workers could become. What is unusual about this incident is that the rebellion was led by the trade union chair of the enterprise. An English translation of this report appears in Chinese Sociology and Anthropology, vol.30, no.4 (Summer 1998), pp.83-6.
61. Vietnam: Economic Commentary and Analysis: A Bi-annual Appraisal of the Vietnamese Economy, no.6 (April 1995), p.31. This is confirmed by Norlund's meetings with Vietnamese trade unionists from both grassroots and leadership levels in 1994 and 1996. Similarly, an Australian trade unionist who visited Vietnam was informed that the police have not been used during labour disputes.
62. On this, see Jeanne Wilson, "The Polish Lesson: China and Poland 1980-1990", Studies in Comparative Communism, no.3/4 (Autumn/Winter 1990), pp.259-80.
63. This decision was issued in the 1985 CCP Central Committee Document no.50.
64. This reform was formalized in 1993 in the trade union constitution. Zhongguo gonghui di shierci chuanguo daibiao dahui wenjian huibian [Collection of documents of the Chinese Trade Union's 12th congress] (Beijing: Gongren Chubanshe [Workers' Press], 1993), p.44.
65. This document, entitled "Fundamental Ideas on Union Reform", was passed by the ACFTU 6th plenary session of the 10th standing committee on 9 October 1988. (Zhongguo gonghui zhongyao wenjian xuanbian [Selections from important Chinese trade union documents] (Beijing: Jixie Gongye Chubanshe [Machine Industry Publishers], 1990), pp.100-1).
66. This information comes from a former trade-union participant of the debate.
67. Zhongguo Gongyun Xueyuan [China Labour Movement College] (ed.), Xin shiqi gonghui gongzuo zhongyao wenjian xuanbian [Selections of important union documents in the new era], restricted to internal circulation, 1993, pp.271-8.
68. "The Sixth Congress of the Vietnamese Trade Unions", Vietnam Courier, no.1, 1989, pp.5-7. Nguyen Van Linh's speech is carried in US Foreign Broadcast Information Service, Daily Report: East Asia, [hereafter FBIS-EAS], no.203, 1988, pp.61-5. At the Congress, the VFTU officially changed its name to the Vietnam General Confederation of Labour (VGCL), implying a policy of broadening and decentralizing trade union power. Due to the emergence of a "multi-sector economy", the union also decided that it would create separate union branches for the state, collective and private sectors.
69. "The Sixth Congress of the Vietnamese Trade Unions", Vietnam Courier, no.1, 1989, pp.5-7. Nguyen Van Linh's speech is carried in US Foreign Broadcast Information Service, Daily Report: East Asia, [hereafter FBIS-EAS], no.203, 1988, pp.61-5. At the Congress, the VFTU officially changed its name to the Vietnam General Confederation of Labour (VGCL), implying a policy of broadening and decentralizing trade union power. Due to the emergence of a "multi-sector economy", the union also decided that it would create separate union branches for the state, collective and private sectors.
70. For an excellent account of the passage of Chinese bills, see Murray Scot Tanner, "How a Bill Becomes a Law in China: Stages and Processes in Lawmaking", The China Quarterly, no.141 (March 1995), pp.39-64. Also see Kevin O'Brien, "Chinese People's Congresses and Legislative Embeddedness", Comparative Political Studies, vol.27, no.1 (1994), pp.80-107.
71. For an excellent account of the passage of Chinese bills, see Murray Scot Tanner, "How a Bill Becomes a Law in China: Stages and Processes in Lawmaking", The China Quarterly, no.141 (March 1995), pp.39-64. Also see Kevin O'Brien, "Chinese People's Congresses and Legislative Embeddedness", Comparative Political Studies, vol.27, no.1 (1994), pp.80-107.
72. Renmin ribao [People's daily], 9 April 1992.
73. "Constitution of the Trade Unions of the People's Republic of China", in The Twelfth National Congress of Chinese Trade Unions (Beijing, 1993), pp.58-78.
74. Order of the President of the People's Republic of China, no.28, July 1994 (in English).
75. Article 1 in the Law on the Trade Unions, adopted at the General Assembly of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam, 30 June 1990, in Hien Phap nuoc Cong hoa Xa hoi Chu nghia Viet Nam 1992 [The Constitution of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam 1992] (in English and Vietnamese). The implication is that the Party will protect the workers, and therefore the role of the unions is to educate workers. See also Gareth Porter, Vietnam: The Politics of Bureaucratic Socialism (Ithaca: Cornell University Press, 1993), p.92.
76. Article 1 in the Law on the Trade Unions, adopted at the General Assembly of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam, 30 June 1990, in Hien Phap nuoc Cong hoa Xa hoi Chu nghia Viet Nam 1992 [The Constitution of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam 1992] (in English and Vietnamese). The implication is that the Party will protect the workers, and therefore the role of the unions is to educate workers. See also Gareth Porter, Vietnam: The Politics of Bureaucratic Socialism (Ithaca: Cornell University Press, 1993), p.92.
77. Renmin ribao, 9 April 1992, p.3.
78. For example, most of the 18 deputies did not endorse the idea that the unions should be responsible for social security management. See FBIS-EAS, no.110, 2 January 1990, p.68.
79. However, because trade union funds in some Vietnamese state factories have been insufficient to pay the salaries of the workplace union cadres, part of the trade union chairs' salary still derives from the enterprise (field data). A Shanghai General Trade Union delegation's report on its visit to Vietnam also noted that many of the state enterprises' workplace unions continue to be financed by the enterprise. (Shanghai gongyun [Shanghai labour movement], no. 10, 1995, pp.41-2.
80. Notably, in many Taiwanese, Hong Kong and Korean-funded enterprises, managers today either adamantly refuse to pay, or pay only on the condition that they control the appointment of the union chair. This information is based on interviews in 1996 in Shanghai and Shenzhen.
81. Vietnam General Federation of Labour, Constitution of the Vietnamese Trade unions (Hanoi, November 1993). For China, see "Constitution of the Trade Unions of the People's Republic of China", pp.58-78.
82. Vietnam General Federation of Labour, Constitution of the Vietnamese Trade unions (Hanoi, November 1993). For China, see "Constitution of the Trade Unions of the People's Republic of China", pp.58-78.
83. Constitution of the Vietnamese Trade Unions, Introduction, p.4.
84. Bo Luat Lao dong cua Nuoc Cong hoa Xa hoi Chu nghia Viet Nam, Labour Code of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam, adopted by the National Assembly of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam, 23 July 1994 (National Political Publishing House, 1994). There is an English version translated and published by Phillips Fox, Melbourne, 1994: Labour Law of the People's Republic of China, adopted at the 8th National People's Congress, 5 July 1994 (Jingji ribao [Economics daily], 6 July 1994, p.2). Thanks go to David Peetz for giving us an English version that he obtained in 1995 from the Chinese government (publisher and date missing). For a detailed analysis of the Chinese Labour Law, see David Peetz, "China's New Labour Law: Forging Collective Bargaining from the Rusting Iron Rice Bowl", in Lo Chi Kin, Suzanne Pepper and Tsui Kai Yuen (eds), China Reviews 1995 (Hong Kong: The Chinese University Press, 1995), pp.14.1-14.17.
85. Bo Luat Lao dong cua Nuoc Cong hoa Xa hoi Chu nghia Viet Nam, Labour Code of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam, adopted by the National Assembly of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam, 23 July 1994 (National Political Publishing House, 1994). There is an English version translated and published by Phillips Fox, Melbourne, 1994: Labour Law of the People's Republic of China, adopted at the 8th National People's Congress, 5 July 1994 (Jingji ribao [Economics daily], 6 July 1994, p.2). Thanks go to David Peetz for giving us an English version that he obtained in 1995 from the Chinese government (publisher and date missing). For a detailed analysis of the Chinese Labour Law, see David Peetz, "China's New Labour Law: Forging Collective Bargaining from the Rusting Iron Rice Bowl", in Lo Chi Kin, Suzanne Pepper and Tsui Kai Yuen (eds), China Reviews 1995 (Hong Kong: The Chinese University Press, 1995), pp.14.1-14.17.
86. Bo Luat Lao dong cua Nuoc Cong hoa Xa hoi Chu nghia Viet Nam, Labour Code of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam, adopted by the National Assembly of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam, 23 July 1994 (National Political Publishing House, 1994). There is an English version translated and published by Phillips Fox, Melbourne, 1994: Labour Law of the People's Republic of China, adopted at the 8th National People's Congress, 5 July 1994 (Jingji ribao [Economics daily], 6 July 1994, p.2). Thanks go to David Peetz for giving us an English version that he obtained in 1995 from the Chinese government (publisher and date missing). For a detailed analysis of the Chinese Labour Law, see David Peetz, "China's New Labour Law: Forging Collective Bargaining from the Rusting Iron Rice Bowl", in Lo Chi Kin, Suzanne Pepper and Tsui Kai Yuen (eds), China Reviews 1995 (Hong Kong: The Chinese University Press, 1995), pp.14.1-14.17.
87. Bo Luat Lao dong cua Nuoc Cong hoa Xa hoi Chu nghia Viet Nam, Labour Code of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam, adopted by the National Assembly of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam, 23 July 1994 (National Political Publishing House, 1994). There is an English version translated and published by Phillips Fox, Melbourne, 1994: Labour Law of the People's Republic of China, adopted at the 8th National People's Congress, 5 July 1994 (Jingji ribao [Economics daily], 6 July 1994, p.2). Thanks go to David Peetz for giving us an English version that he obtained in 1995 from the Chinese government (publisher and date missing). For a detailed analysis of the Chinese Labour Law, see David Peetz, "China's New Labour Law: Forging Collective Bargaining from the Rusting Iron Rice Bowl", in Lo Chi Kin, Suzanne Pepper and Tsui Kai Yuen (eds), China Reviews 1995 (Hong Kong: The Chinese University Press, 1995), pp.14.1-14.17.
88. Anita Chan, "The Emerging Patterns", p.54.
89. Interview with the preparatory commission of the Vietnamese Labour Code by Irene Nørlund in Hanoi, July 1994.
90. The evidence for heated behind-the-door debates derives from two interviews in Beijing in 1994: one with an ACFTU official and one with an official of the Ministry of Labour, both of whom were involved in committees responsible for drafting the Labour Law. Further evidence comes from a meeting held by Beijing's Labour Movement Institute that same year at which Anita Chan was able to observe the union's internal discussion of the draft. The ACFTU's position was definitely pro-labour.
91. Vietnam Investment Review, 3-9 January 1994.
92. Vietnam Investment Review, 30 May-5 June 1994.
93. Vietnam Investment Review, 2-8 May 1994.
94. Tu Le, "The Labour Code in the Life of Workers: Interview with Pham Gia Thieu", Vietnamese Trade Union, no.4, 1994, p.7; Eva Hansson, Trade Unions and Doi Moi: The Changing Role of Trade Unions in the Era of Economic Liberalization in Vietnam (Stockholm: Department of Political Science, University of Stockholm, Fall 1994), p.22; Nguyen Tri Dung, "Minimum Working Age Fixed at 15", Vietnam Investment Review, 6-12 June 1994; Lan Thanh, "National Assembly Debates Labour Code", Vietnam Investment Review, 3-9 January 1994, p.21.
95. Tu Le, "The Labour Code in the Life of Workers: Interview with Pham Gia Thieu", Vietnamese Trade Union, no.4, 1994, p.7; Eva Hansson, Trade Unions and Doi Moi: The Changing Role of Trade Unions in the Era of Economic Liberalization in Vietnam (Stockholm: Department of Political Science, University of Stockholm, Fall 1994), p.22; Nguyen Tri Dung, "Minimum Working Age Fixed at 15", Vietnam Investment Review, 6-12 June 1994; Lan Thanh, "National Assembly Debates Labour Code", Vietnam Investment Review, 3-9 January 1994, p.21.
96. Tu Le, "The Labour Code in the Life of Workers: Interview with Pham Gia Thieu", Vietnamese Trade Union, no.4, 1994, p.7; Eva Hansson, Trade Unions and Doi Moi: The Changing Role of Trade Unions in the Era of Economic Liberalization in Vietnam (Stockholm: Department of Political Science, University of Stockholm, Fall 1994), p.22; Nguyen Tri Dung, "Minimum Working Age Fixed at 15", Vietnam Investment Review, 6-12 June 1994; Lan Thanh, "National Assembly Debates Labour Code", Vietnam Investment Review, 3-9 January 1994, p.21.
97. Tu Le, "The Labour Code in the Life of Workers: Interview with Pham Gia Thieu", Vietnamese Trade Union, no.4, 1994, p.7; Eva Hansson, Trade Unions and Doi Moi: The Changing Role of Trade Unions in the Era of Economic Liberalization in Vietnam (Stockholm: Department of Political Science, University of Stockholm, Fall 1994), p.22; Nguyen Tri Dung, "Minimum Working Age Fixed at 15", Vietnam Investment Review, 6-12 June 1994; Lan Thanh, "National Assembly Debates Labour Code", Vietnam Investment Review, 3-9 January 1994, p.21.
98. Anita Chan, "The Emerging Patterns", p.54.
99. Tu Le, "The Labour Code in the Life of Workers", notes that the ILO had given advice in relation to the formulation of the labour law in Vietnam. Also see Vietnam: Employment and the New Labour Law (Canberra: Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade [Australia], Southeast Asia section, Vietnam/Laos section, October 1994), p.3. In China, the ILO office in Beijing has been actively promoting the tripartite concept in China. (This information is based on interviews with the ILO Beijing director in 1994 and on ELO documents on China.)
100. Tu Le, "The Labour Code in the Life of Workers", notes that the ILO had given advice in relation to the formulation of the labour law in Vietnam. Also see Vietnam: Employment and the New Labour Law (Canberra: Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade [Australia], Southeast Asia section, Vietnam/Laos section, October 1994), p.3. In China, the ILO office in Beijing has been actively promoting the tripartite concept in China. (This information is based on interviews with the ILO Beijing director in 1994 and on ELO documents on China.)
101. The Chinese law does not have an article on wage deductions, but China's "Provisional Regulation on the Payment of Wages" sets the maximum deductions at 20 per cent of the monthly wage (issued by China's Ministry of Labour, December 1994).
102. Vietnam Investment Review, 25 April-1 May 1994.
103. Do Muoi's address to the congress of the VGCL, 3 November 1993 (FBIS-EAS, 12 November 1993). This was confirmed during visits to several enterprises in March 1996 and from September to December 1996.
104. The power relations of these institutions in the state enterprises are delineated in the Enterprise Law that was passed in 1988 (Renmin ribao, 16 April 1988, p.2). Our comments on how this relationship is working out in the state firms are based on field observations and conversations with trade union officials in 1995. A similar trend was noted by You Ji during his field research in 1992: see "Dismantling Party/State Controls in China's State Enterprises", PhD dissertation, Australian National University, 1993, pp.40-153.
105. The power relations of these institutions in the state enterprises are delineated in the Enterprise Law that was passed in 1988 (Renmin ribao, 16 April 1988, p.2). Our comments on how this relationship is working out in the state firms are based on field observations and conversations with trade union officials in 1995. A similar trend was noted by You Ji during his field research in 1992: see "Dismantling Party/State Controls in China's State Enterprises", PhD dissertation, Australian National University, 1993, pp.40-153.
106. An interview with an ACFTU official in charge of organizational matters in 1994 provided a figure of 20-30 per cent, and the official thought that was an under-estimate. In mid-1994 a report provided a figure of 12 per cent of 170,000 foreign-funded firms as unionized. See Beijing Review, vol.37, no.28 (11-17 July 1994), p.7. But in mid-1995, a year later, a report stated that 10 per cent of the 100,000 foreign firms that were in operation (out of 200,000 that were registered) had unions. Beijing Review, vol.38, no.20 (15-21 May 1995), p.19.
107. An interview with an ACFTU official in charge of organizational matters in 1994 provided a figure of 20-30 per cent, and the official thought that was an under-estimate. In mid-1994 a report provided a figure of 12 per cent of 170,000 foreign-funded firms as unionized. See Beijing Review, vol.37, no.28 (11-17 July 1994), p.7. But in mid-1995, a year later, a report stated that 10 per cent of the 100,000 foreign firms that were in operation (out of 200,000 that were registered) had unions. Beijing Review, vol.38, no.20 (15-21 May 1995), p.19.
108. This was the scenario in the notorious case of the Zhili Toy Factory which caught fire; 84 workers who had been locked in behind barred windows burned to death. Yi Fu, "Feixushang de pingdiao: Shenzhen '11.19' teda huozai shigu jishi yu fanzi" [Pondering at the ruins: reflections and records of the Shenzhen November 19th fire disaster], Zhongguo gongren [Chinese worker], no.5, 1994, pp.4-8; also no.6, 1994, pp.8-11.
109. This was the scenario in the notorious case of the Zhili Toy Factory which caught fire; 84 workers who had been locked in behind barred windows burned to death. Yi Fu, "Feixushang de pingdiao: Shenzhen '11.19' teda huozai shigu jishi yu fanzi" [Pondering at the ruins: reflections and records of the Shenzhen November 19th fire disaster], Zhongguo gongren [Chinese worker], no.5, 1994, pp.4-8; also no.6, 1994, pp.8-11.
110. This is from a document we obtained that was circulated by the Guangdong Province Trade Union Research Department, dated June 1993.
111. Information based on 1995 field work in Shanghai. For details on how new trade unions are being set up, see Anita Chan, "Labor Relations in Foreign-funded Ventures", in Gregory O'Leary (ed.), Adjusting to Capitalism: Chinese Workers and Their State (Armonk: M. E. Sharpe, 1987), pp. 122-50. There are rare cases in China, though, where a new union is formed through workers' demands. One oft-quoted case is the Japaneseowned Garden Hotel in Shanghai. The new trade union and its chair emerged from a spontaneous industrial dispute, and were recognized by the Shanghai General Federation of Trade Unions. The new chairperson, taking his responsibility seriously, resigned from his middle-ranking managerial staff position so as to devote himself full-time to union work. Reportedly, genuine collective bargaining has been taking place regularly at this hotel. Shanghai gongyun, no. 11, 1994, pp. 19-21.
112. Information based on 1995 field work in Shanghai. For details on how new trade unions are being set up, see Anita Chan, "Labor Relations in Foreign-funded Ventures", in Gregory O'Leary (ed.), Adjusting to Capitalism: Chinese Workers and Their State (Armonk: M. E. Sharpe, 1987), pp. 122-50. There are rare cases in China, though, where a new union is formed through workers' demands. One oft-quoted case is the Japaneseowned Garden Hotel in Shanghai. The new trade union and its chair emerged from a spontaneous industrial dispute, and were recognized by the Shanghai General Federation of Trade Unions. The new chairperson, taking his responsibility seriously, resigned from his middle-ranking managerial staff position so as to devote himself full-time to union work. Reportedly, genuine collective bargaining has been taking place regularly at this hotel. Shanghai gongyun, no. 11, 1994, pp. 19-21.
113. Vietnam Investment Review, 18-24 July 1994, p. 12.
114. Far Eastern Economic Review, 25 January 1996, p.22.
115. This is based on Irene Nørlund's field observations in 1996.
116. Lao dong [Labour], no.27/96 (3 March 1996); no.33/96 (17 March 1996). A year later the taxi drivers' union merged with other unions under the Ho Chi Minh City Federation of Labour.
117. Lao dong [Labour], no.27/96 (3 March 1996); no.33/96 (17 March 1996). A year later the taxi drivers' union merged with other unions under the Ho Chi Minh City Federation of Labour.
118. Information from the VGCL based on March 1996 field research by Norlund.
119. See Gerard Greenfield, "Strikes in Vietnam: Between Discipline and Dignity", Asian Labour Update, August-October 1995, pp.25-7. Greenfield also notes the emergence of labour associations, but the figure he cites is higher - 700 labour associations by mid-1993.
120. Also see Gareth Porter, Vietnam: The Politics of Bureaucratic Socialism, p.92.
121. Based on interviews in 1994 with the national secretary and a member of the staff of the Australian Public Sector Union who went to Vietnam for the program. Also see an article written by a representative of the Trades and Labour Council of Western Australia in Vietnamese Trade Union, no.1, 1995, pp.19-20.
122. Information from the VGCL, March 1996.
123. Based on Chan's interview in Hanoi with the vice-president of this new union in January 1998.
124. Vietnamese Trade Union, no.4, 1997, p.8.
125. This observation was made by the director of the ILO office in Beijing in 1995. Also, in 1995 a high-level official of the Shanghai General Trade Union told us that the time was not yet ripe to discuss strengthening of the industrial unions in China. See Gordon White, Jude Howell and Shang Xiaoyuan, In Search of Civil Society: Market Reform and Social Change in Contemporary China (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1996), p.60.
126. China Labour Bulletin, no.2, April 1994, pp.17-19; no.15, June 1995, pp.7-8; no.24, March 1996, p.4.
127. China Labour Bulletin, no.2, April 1994, pp.17-19; no.15, June 1995, pp.7-8; no.24, March 1996, p.4.
128. China Labour Bulletin, no.2, April 1994, pp.17-19; no.15, June 1995, pp.7-8; no.24, March 1996, p.4.
129. Nanyang gongbao [Southeast Asian workers' news], 4 April 1996.
130. In November 1996 two young people were formally prosecuted for sedition after been jailed for two years without trial for organizing a "Migrant Workers' Federation" and "Migrant Workers' Friendship Club" (China Labour Bulletin, press release, 12 November 1996).
131. Information based on a telephone conversation in May 1996 with the international officer of the Australian Council of Trade Unions, who thought this a significant development that was unimaginable three years back.
132. The VGCL fought over several years to raise the minimum wage from US$35 to US$50 a month in Ho Chi Minh City, but without success. Vietnam Investment Review, 23-29 May 1994, p.5. Finally, in 1996, it was increased to US$50 a month.
133. Vietnam Investment Review, 21-27 November 1994, p.6.
134. This information was based on an interview with an ACFTU official in Beijing in 1992.
135. Transcript of Australian Broadcast Corporation radio program, "Report from Asia", 31 August 1996. Another example is the VGCL's willingness to work with foreign NGOs to help expose Taiwanese and Korean managers' mistreatment of Vietnamese workers. (Based on a series of email communications in 1996 and 1997 with Thuyen Nguyen of the New-York based Vietnam Labour Watch.)
136. Zhao Shunzhang, "Impressions of the Vietnamese Trade Union: Observations by the Shanghai Federation Delegation", Shanghai gongyun, no.10, 1995, pp.41-2.