Labor unions have the function of taking care of and protecting the legal and legitimate rights and interests of workers. So when workers are laid off, what should the labor union do?

This article was consulted by Lawyer Nguyen Quang Trung

Legal grounds:

• Labor Code 2019;
• Decree No. 145/2020/ND-CP.

We receive the following questions:

I am a labor union official in the company. Currently, the company plans to cut some employees due to reorganization and rearrangement of departments. I want to ask what the company’s labor union will need to do?

Pursuant to Point a, Clause 1, Clause 3 and 6, Article 42 of the 2019 Labor Code as follows:

Article 42. Obligations of employers in case of changes in structure, technology or for economic reasons

1. The following cases are considered structural and technological changes:

a) Change organizational structure, reorganize labor;

3. In case of structural or technological changes that affect the employment of many employees, the employer must develop and implement a labor utilization plan according to the provisions of Article 44 of this Code; In case there is a new workplace, priority will be given to retraining workers for continued use.

6. Dismissal of employees according to the provisions of this Article can only be carried out after consulting with the employee representative organization at the grassroots level for business has a grassroots employee representative organization where the employee is a member and notify the Provincial People’s Committee and the employee 30 days in advance.

Pursuant to Article 44 of the 2019 Labor Code as follows:

Article 44. Labor use plan

1. The labor use plan must have the following main contents:
   • a) Number and list of employees who continue to be employed, employees who are retrained for continued employment, and employees who are transferred to part-time work;
   • b) Number and list of retired employees;
   • c) Number and list of employees whose labor contracts must be terminated;
   • d) Rights and obligations of employers, employees and related parties in implementing the labor use plan;
   • đ) Measures and financial sources to ensure implementation of the plan.
2. When developing a labor use plan, the employer must exchange opinions with the employee representative organization at the grassroots level for business has a grassroots employee representative organization. The employment plan must be publicly announced to employees within 15 days from the date of approval.

According to the above regulations, before an enterprise dismisses an employee due to changes in organizational structure or labor reorganization, the enterprise must:

• Exchange opinions with the grassroots employee representative organization (if the enterprise has a representative employee organization);
• Develop and implement labor utilization plans if affecting many workers;
• Notify 30 days in advance to the Provincial People’s Committee and workers.

Thus, when an enterprise plans to lay off workers due to structural changes or rearrangement of departments, the labor union at the grassroots level needs to request the enterprise to organize a dialogue at the workplace according to regulations in Articles 63 and 64 of the 2019 Labor Code.

Pursuant to Article 41 of Decree No. 145/2020/ND-CP as follows:

Article 41. Organizing dialogue when a case arises

1. In case the employer must consult and exchange opinions with the employee representative organization at the grassroots level on the regulations on evaluating the level of work completion according to the provisions of Point a, Clause 1, Article 36; dismissal of employees according to the provisions of Article 42; labor utilization plan as prescribed in Article 44; salary scale, salary table and labor norms as prescribed in Article 93; Bonus regulations as prescribed in Article 104 and labor regulations as prescribed in Article 118 of the Labor Code are implemented as follows:
   • a) The employer is responsible for sending the document with the content needing consultation and exchange of opinions to the representative members participating in the dialogue of the employees;
   • b) The representative members participating in the dialogue of the employees are responsible for organizing the collection of opinions from the workers they represent and synthesizing them into documents of each grassroots representative organization of workers. Dialogue representative group of workers to send to employers; In case the content of the dialogue is related to the rights and interests of female workers, it is necessary to ensure that they get their opinions;
   • c) Based on the opinions of the employee representative organizations at the grassroots level, the representative dialogue group of employees and the employer organizes a dialogue to discuss, exchange opinions, and consult, share information about the content provided by the employer;
   • d) The number, participants, time, and location of the dialogue are determined by both parties according to grassroots democracy regulations at the workplace;
   • đ) Dialogue developments must be recorded in minutes and signed by representatives of the parties participating in the dialogue as prescribed in Clause 4, Article 39 of this Decree;
   • e) At least 03 working days from the end of the dialogue, the employer is responsible for publicly announcing the main contents of the dialogue at the workplace; The employee representative organization (if any), the employee dialogue representative group (if any) disseminates the main contents of the dialogue to employees.
2. For cases of temporary suspension of work of employees as prescribed in Clause 1, Article 128 of the Labor Code, the employer and the representative organization of employees whose workers is temporarily suspended are members can communicate in writing or through direct communication between the employer’s dialogue representative and the employee’s representative organization.

According to the above regulations, at the dialogue, members participating dialogue of the employees have the right to contribute opinions on the company’s personnel reduction plan and labor use plan.