HANOI (ILO News) – Viet Nam’s National Assembly is expected to vote for the approval of the free trade agreement between the country and the European Union (EU), which has strong labour and environment requirements for sustainable development, in early June.

If given the greenlight by the National Assembly, the agreement will come into force one month after Viet Nam and the EU have notified each other that the legal procedures have been complete. The EVFTA, which has significant economic benefits for both parties, was signed in June 2019, approved by the European Parliament on 12 February and adopted by the European Council on 30 March.
As a new generation FTA, the trade deal attempts to address sustainability challenge of free trade by incorporating labour and environment requirements.

“There have been legitimate concerns that free flow of trade can broaden inequality between and within nations. EVFTA has labour and environment requirements designed to ensure that the FTA contributes to protection of workers’ rights, fairer share of economic gains from free trade, and environmental sustainability,” said ILO Viet Nam Director, Chang-Hee Lee.

Chapter 13 of EVFTA on Trade and Sustainable Development requires Viet Nam and the EU “reaffirms its commitments, in accordance with its obligations under the ILO and the ILO Declaration on Fundamental Principles and Rights at Work […] to respect, promote and effectively implement the principles concerning the fundamental rights at work”. They include the freedom of association and the effective recognition of the right to collective bargaining; the elimination of all forms of forced or compulsory labour; the effective abolition of child labour; and the elimination of discrimination in respect of employment and occupation.

This chapter specifically stipulates that each party will make continued and sustained efforts towards ratifying eight fundamental ILO conventions. Viet Nam has ratified six out of eight fundamental conventions. During the current sitting, the National Assembly is expected to vote for the ratification of Convention 105 on Abolition of Forced Labour Convention. It will leave the Convention 87 on Freedom of Association and Protection of the Right to Organise as the only fundamental convention left and the Government plans to ratify it in 2023.

“The EVFTA, together with the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP), will provide great opportunities for Viet Nam for faster post-COVID 19 recovery” said the head of ILO Viet Nam.

Viet Nam has also been taking the opportunity of joining EVFTA and CPTPP to modernize its labour laws and industrial relations system. The adoption of the revised Labour Code in November 2019 is expected to bring meaningful changes in the ways industrial relations works for the benefits of workers and employers.

“And a new industrial relations system based on recognition of freedom of association and right to collective bargaining is a key driver for Viet Nam to move towards an upper middle income country, together with a modernized labour market with better skilled workforce and effective social protection system”, the ILO Viet Nam Director added.


* This document is a product of the European Union-funded ILO project on Promoting the application of ILO Fundamental Conventions under the framework of EU – Viet Nam Free Trade Agreement. Its contents do not necessarily reflect the views of the European Union.