The ILO welcomes the European Parliament to ratify a free trade agreement with Vietnam

The ILO welcomes the European Parliament to ratify a free trade agreement with Vietnam
21:11 | 12/02/2020.

(ILO) International Labor Organization (ILO) welcomes the European Parliament has just voted to approve the free trade agreement between the EU and Vietnam today (February 12).

The free trade agreement (also known as EVFTA) was signed by the two sides in Hanoi on June 30, 2019. EVFTA is a new generation of free trade agreement (FTA) that includes important labor and environmental provisions towards sustainable development. When it comes into effect, the agreement is expected to bring economic benefits to both the EU and Vietnam.

The European Parliament has just voted to ratify a free trade agreement between the EU and Vietnam today (February 12).

“Over the past time, there are growing concerns around the world that free trade can aggravate inequality between countries and within a country, and possibly harm environment. The new generation FTAs ​​try to address this sustainable development challenge by including labor and environmental requirements ”, said Mr. Chang-Hee Lee – ILO Vietnam Director.

Chapter 13 on Trade and Sustainable Development asks Vietnam and the EU to “reaffirm their commitment, consistent with the obligations under the framework of the ILO and the ILO Declaration of Fundamental Principles and Rights in labor, will respect, promote and effectively implement the principles of fundamental rights at work ”. These rights include freedom of association and real recognition of the right to collective bargaining; end all forms of forced or forced labor; effectively eliminating child labor; and ending employment and occupational discrimination.

Chapter 13 also requires that each party will continue and sustain their efforts towards ratification of core ILO conventions.

Vietnam has now ratified 6 out of 8 basic ILO conventions. Convention No. 98 on the Right to Organize and Collective Bargaining is the latest convention ratified by the National Assembly in June 2019. Vietnam is currently planning to ratify the other two basic conventions, including: Convention No. 105 on the Elimination of Forced Labor – expected in 2020; and Convention No. 87 on Freedom of Association and Protection of the Right to Organize – scheduled for 2023.

“EVFTA’s labor and environmental requirements will benefit all parties, help Vietnam develop sustainably by avoiding the“ race to the bottom ”and ensuring that current growth will not There is a price to pay with future generation opportunities, ”said ILO Viet Nam Director.

The Vietnamese National Assembly is expected to vote through EVFTA in the upcoming meeting in May. If it is approved, the agreement will come into effect within a month after Vietnam and the EU have officially notified the the two sides on the completion of legal processes.

According to the Director of ILO Vietnam, joining EVFTA and CPTPP (Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership) is an opportunity for Vietnam to modernize the labor law system and labor relations. moving. The adoption of the revised Labor Code in November 2019 brought the country’s legal framework closer to the basic ILO conventions, creating a necessary legal environment for industrial relations and relations. modern employment system of Vietnam.

“Modern industrial relations based on the recognition of freedom of association, together with a more skilled workforce and an effective social security system, are an important social driver for Vietnam to move forward. become a sustainable high-middle-income country, ”said Dr. Chang-Hee Lee.

ST/ DD – B.D (Capital Labor).