The Law on unemployment insurance- adjustment for adaptation

In addition, the current law stipulates the procedures for handling unemployment insurance for workers are generally timely, lawful, more and more convenient and fast, which [r]

THE LAW ON UNEMPLOYMENT INSURANCE – ADJUSTMENT FOR ADAPTATION

PhD.Le Thi Hoai Thu MSc Nguyen Ngoc Lan

1 Impacts of the era on labor, employment and unemployment 1.1 Impacts of Industry 4.0

The fourth industrial revolution is the combination of new technologies mainly such as the Internet of Things (IoT), Big data, Artificial Intelligence (AI), Renewable energy/clean technology, Robotics, 3D printing, New materials (grapheme, skymions, bio-plastic), Blockchain, Virtual/Augmented Reality), Smart cities, Fintech, Shared economics The development and utilization of advanced technologies will replace human labor, contribute to the increase of labor productivity, reduce manufacturing costs, bring benefits to the country, enterprises and consumers The revolution is expected to change the entire production and management system in Vietnam, affecting all aspects of contemporary social life deeply327 The rapid development will lead to the replacement of jobs by automation and robots in several industries such as textile, footwear, electronics, assembly machines and electronic components, consulting, customer care Agriculture, which has so far used human labor mainly, currently uses agricultural robotic system for fields and farmers manage their fields328 The banking system is getting more convenient as people begin to become familiar with Internet Banking service and no longer need to go to transaction offices and the position of bank clerk are gradually disappearing Other occupations with specific repeated processes such as accountant, programmer and operational maintainer can be replaced by AI robots329

According to the International Labor Organization (ILO), about 56% of workforce in ASEAN countries are at risk of losing their jobs due to robots330 Vietnam is one of countries which are most affected by Industry 4.0331 According to the Ministry of Science and Technology, there are several occupations in Vietnam which are forecasted to be eliminated owing to the impacts of Industry 4.0 such as factory worker (44%), cashier (40%), taxi driver (20%), customer care staff (18%), pilot (16%)332 It is expected that about two billion jobs will disappear by 2030 and there is no labor working in banking, accounting, maintenance-related sectors while 80% of new jobs will be available by 2025 that have never existed until now Additionally, 86% of workers in simple industries will be at risk of losing their jobs due

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Central Institute for Economic Management, Impacts of Industrial Revolution 4.0 on Vietnam's human resource development, 2018

328 Central Institute for Economic Management, Impacts of Industrial Revolution 4.0 on Vietnam's human resource

development, 2018

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baodauthau.vn/doanh-nghiep/nguon-nhan-luc-40-co-hoi-va-thach-thuc-69031.html

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331http://www.most.gov.vn/vn/tin-tuc/14092/nguon-nhan-luc-chat-luong-cao san-sang-truoc-cach-mang-cong-nghiep-4-0.aspx 332

to the effects of Industry 4.0333 The revolution increases the number of unemployed people because of the rapid development of digital revolution This shows that this is a significant challenge for the country in arranging and solving insurance issues for unemployed people Completing the legal regulations on unemployment insurance for workers is posing challenges to managerial levels in the context of this digital revolution

1.2 Impacts of the Comprehensive and Progressive Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement (CPTPP)

CPTPP is an agreement that benefits Vietnam with the expectation of bringing new motivation for the development of numerous economic sectors According to the Ministry of Planning and Investment, CPTPP will help Vietnam to achieve the increase in total export of over 4% per year equivalent to USD billion, in intra-regional export of 14.3% equivalent USD 2.61 billion, in extra-regional export 1.7% equivalent to USD 1.4 billion Especially, textile and footwear industry grow at high rate from 8.3 to 10.8% These products are exported to Australia and Canada with the total annual consumption of USD 10 billion per year334 In addition to economic growth, the participant of Vietnam in CPTPP will create more jobs for Vietnamese workers It is calculated that the number of new jobs will increase from 17.000 to 27.000 since 2020335 Thus, this is a good opportunity for Vietnamese workers to participate in the domestic and international labor market, which requires them to prepare human and investment resources, as well as the readiness firms to produce and ensure goods are accepted by the markets within the agreement The challenge that Vietnamese workershave to face is to make the most of employment opportunities while regional and international requirements specify qualified, professional, senior and experienced workers This leads to the increase in labor competition, some businesses fall into difficulties and the possibility of unemployment will occur By the first quarter of 2019, the labor force aged 15 and over of the country was 55.4 million people, an increase of 331.9 thousand people; the number of employed people was 54.3 million, an increase of 329.2 thousand people; the number of unemployed people was 1.1 million, a decrease of 8.2 thousand people compared to the same period last year336 It can be said that the participation of Vietnam in CPTPP will increase the employment opportunities for Vietnamese workers; however, there are a number of unqualified workers that will be inevitably unemployed

1.3 Impacts of EU-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA)

EVFTA has helped Vietnam to attract more FDI and create new production capacity, contributing to increase the positive effects of international economic integration for Vietnam, especially in export and import To take advantage of FTAs, exporters need to proactively

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Central Institute for Economic Management, Impacts of Industrial Revolution 4.0 on Vietnam's human resource development, 2018

334Thai Linh (2018), Impacts of CPTPP on economic sectors, accessed on November 28, 2018, https://www.nhandan.com.vn/antuong/item/38387802-tac-dong-cua-cptpp-den-cac-nganh-kinh-te.html

improve competitiveness and productivity through scaling up production, investing in technology to improve quality and reduce prices of goods Specifically, they need to mobilize investment in capital, human resources and technology to scale up production In particular, investment in technology development is one of key factors to help enterprises to improve productivity and competiveness in the market EVFTA will significantly boost trade between Vietnam and EU while turnover between two parties have increased 10 times in the nearly past 10 years and reached USD 53 billion in 2018337 The main exporting items of Vietnam to this market are textile and tropical fruits while these industries mostly use human labor The labor force working in these fields has accounted for a relatively large number When goods enter EU countries, it requires workers to be highly qualified and experienced whilst this proportion of Vietnamese workers is small Therefore, EVFTA may cause uncompetitive firms to reduce production and even dissolve or go bankrupt When EU goods go to Vietnam, their quality and the fact that Vietnamese consumers prefer foreign products338 may cause difficulties for domestic companies, requiring them restructure, rearrange, reduce production, go bankrupt and workers lose their jobs Thus, the unemployment in Vietnam has recently increased significantly

2 The current situation of unemployment insurance law in Vietnam in the context of new era

Regulations on unemployment insurance are regulated in the Law on Social Insurance in 2006 and effective since January 1, 2009 Since, 2015, the unemployment insurance system is regulated in the Law on Employment in 2013339 To concretize the unemployment insurance system, the Government issued a system of legal documents to regulate relations among workers, employers and state agencies These regulations form a relatively comprehensive legal system of unemployment insurance and they are an important legal basis for effective enforcement Nevertheless, the law on unemployment insurance has certain restrictions in terms of participants, insurance system, funds and fund management and especially documents as well as procedures for implementing unemployment insurance

2.1 The current situation of legal regulations on unemployment insurance in Vietnam

Firstly, participants in unemployment insurance

Article 43 of the Law on Employment in 2013 stipulates that participants in unemployment insurance include workers and workers Accordingly, workers are obligated to participate in unemployment insurance when working under anemployment contract In case the employee commits to many contracts at the same time, the employer of the first contract has the responsibility to participate in unemployment insurance for the workers These employers include agencies and units specified in clause 3, Article 43 of the Law on Employment Therefore, employers are required to participate in unemployment insurance for

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workers at the social insurance organization within 30 days since the date that the employment contract and the working contract take effect The Law on Employment in 2013 has expanded participants in unemployment insurance in comparison with the Law on Social Insurance in 2006 to ensure the right to participate in unemployment insurance and the life of workers that are easy to lose their jobs due to the transformation of the situation Nonetheless, participants of the current law have not included housekeepers and officials

Secondly, the unemployment insurance system

- Unemployment allowance

To be entitled to unemployment insurance, workers must terminate the contract in accordance with legal regulations unless it is stipulated in point a and b, clause of Article 49 and follow procedures and processes properly In addition, if workers receive severance pay when terminating the employment contract, they are not entitled to unemployment insurance This regulation is stricter, which contributes to the guarantee of equality for participants in unemployment insurance, as well as the financial security of the unemployment insurance fund

The current law also stipulates that workers have to pay unemployment insurance under the provision of clause 2, Article 49 of the Law on Employment in 2013 This is consistent with international practices as most countries in the world regulate that workers must have a long time of working and minimum time of paying unemployment insurance in order to receive unemployment insurance This provision ensures that receiving results from contribution and spending is guaranteed by revenue

In terms of documents and procedures for receiving unemployment insurance, the current law regulates that they must be submitted at the employment service centers within months from the date of terminating contract This ensures that agencies are able to monitor, manage and control the quantity of unemployed people to pay unemployment allowance accurately On the other hand, the law stipulates the period that workers receive unemployment insurance depending on the duration that they pay unemployment insurance under clause 2, Article 50 This provision is completely reasonable, which ensures equality among participants in unemployment insurance The maximum receiving period is regulated as 12 months, which helps to avoid the financial overload of the unemployment insurance fund for a long time

with current actual legal framework in Vietnam, as well as regulations of ILO and other countries in the world

- Employment consultation and introduction system

Article 55 of the Law on Employment stipulates that workers who are receiving unemployment insurance are consulted and introduced freely by employment service centers to jobs in accordance with their qualification and experience The period that workers are entitled to unemployment insurance and assisted, consulted and introduced by employment service centers is from the date that workers receive monthly allowance and does not exceed the total time that they receive unemployment insurance under the decision of the Director of the Department of Labor, Invalids and Social Affairs The allocated annual budget is based on the consulting and introducing costs of the previous year according to the number of workers applying for unemployment insurance and calculated according to the quantity of actual applicants Consulting and introducing fees are applied in accordance with the law on fees340

- Support for vocational training system

Workers are entitled to vocational training support when meeting the requirements in Article 55 of the Law on Employment in 2013 When they meet all above conditions, they are entitled to vocational training support The duration of support is based on the period of actual vocational training but must not exceed months The supporting amount is regulated in the Decision no 77/2014/QD-TfGM of the Prime Minister on the supporting amount of vocational training for participants in unemployment insurance Accordingly, the maximum supporting amount is VND million/person/month This amount needs to be reviewed to ensure the rights of workers to engage in vocational training and be supported for vocational training when the society moves and changes constantly

- Support for training and improving professional skills system

This is a new insurance system added in the Law on Employment in 2013 It shows the share of employers for the unemployment insurance fund when they cannot train workers owing to the change of science and technology The regulation has made significant progress and been consistent with the Law on Vocational Education in 2014, thereby reducing the burden of vocational training for employers, helping them overcome difficulties when dealing with problems related to workers under transformation

In order to be entitled to be supported for training and improving occupational skills for workers, employers need to meet all requirements specified in Article 47 of the Law on Employment in 2013 and Article of Decree no 28/2015/ND-CP The maximum supporting amount is VND million/person/month The particular amount is calculated on a monthly basis, according to the actual period of education of each training course but must not exceed months If the course has the duration of under 15 days, it shall be counted as a half of a month and if the course lasts more than 15 days, it shall be counted as one month to determine

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the supporting amount If the supporting amount for courses exceeds regulated amount, the excess amount shall be paid by employers341

Thirdly, unemployment insurance fund and management of fund

The current law regulates that the unemployment insurance fund is contributed by both workers and employers This shows that the insurance fund principle is protected by the state The premium is determined as 1% of the monthly salary of workers participating in unemployment insurance, which iscontributed by workers, employers and the state The salary used as the basis for payingunemployment insurance is based on the Decree no 28/2015/ND-CP Accordingly, the monthly salary of workers that work under the salary system paid by the state stipulated in clause 1, 2, Article 58 of the Law is the basis for paying unemployment insurance

The unemployment insurance fund is formed by the contributions of workers, employers and state support, benefits of the fund‘s investment and other legal revenues, as well as the fund used to pay unemployment insurance, management and investment cost to preserve and develop the fund Vietnam social security is selected to be the direct agency to organize and manage the fund, which is consistent with the specific conditions in Vietnam as the management of the agency is operated effectively

Fourthly, documents and procedures for the implementation of unemployment insurance system

The unemployment insurance system includes unemployment allowance, employment consultation and introduction, support for vocational training, support for training and improving skills of workers In respect of unemployment allowance system, documents and procedures are implemented according to Article from 16 to 23 of the Decree no 28/2015/ND-CP With regard to employment consultation and introduction system, documents and procedures are implemented according to Article 15 of the Decree In terms of support for vocational training and support for training and improving skills of workers documents and procedures are implemented according to Article 24, 25 and Article 26 respectively of the Decree The implementation of unemployment insurance system must comply with the statutory procedures and documents The state and social security agency facilitate workers to receive unemployment insurance, contributing to ensure their lives, help them quickly adapt to new working environment and harsh working conditions which require qualification and specialty

Fifthly, handling violation of law and settling disputes on unemployment insurance

The violation of law is illegal acts of one of the parties or related parties in the field of unemployment insurance of any organization or individual The handling of the violation of law is implemented according to administrative punishment regulation, which is stipulated in the Decree no 95/2013/ND-CP dated August 22, 2013 and amended in the Decree no

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88/2015/ND-CP Accordingly, these acts are late payment, improper payment, violation on making unemployment insurance book and other regulations The main punishment is warning and fine with the amount from VND million to VND 75 million There are also additional penalties The handling of administrative violation has been innovated and made progress More acts are added and the fine increases, which help to ensure the strict punishment and prevent illegal acts in practice However, it is inappropriate if there is only administrative punishment It is necessary to have criminal punishment as a further deterrence for violating individuals and organizations

According to the current law, the disputes on unemployment insurance are labor disputes or administrative disputes342 Therefore, the principles, jurisdiction, order and procedure for settling these disputes shall comply with the regulation of point d, clause 1, Article 201 of the 2012 Labor Code, 2015 Civil Procedure Code (labor dispute) and Administrative Procedure Law (administrative dispute)

2.2 Implementation of Vietnamese laws on unemployment insurance

2.2.1 Results

On the basis of the law and conclusive and comprehensive solutions, the number of participants in unemployment insurance have increased over past 10 years and ensure the target assigned by the state According to the report of the Ministry of Labor, Invalids and Social Affairs, the number of participants in unemployment insurance increased from 5.993.300 people in 2009 to 10.308.180 people in 2015, an increase of 11.8% compared to the previous year In 2018, there were 12.690.173 participants, an increase of 7.7% compared to 2017, which was equal to 87.7% of the total number of participants in compulsory social insurance (14.45 million people) The number of people receiving unemployment allowance increased from 671.789 in 2017 to 763.573 in 2018 The total amount of unemployment insurance revenue also increased In 2018, the average monthly unemployment insurance contribution of workers was VND 4.937.117, an increase of 9.94% compared to 2017 The total unemployment insurance revenue in 2018 was VND 15.531 billion, an increase of 14.9% compared to VND 13.517 billion in 2017343 This shows that the law on unemployment insurance is more and more appropriate, meeting the needs of workers when they lose their jobs, facilitating them and employers access to supports from unemployment insurance fund, contributing to cover participants in unemployment insurance under the changes of current socio-economic situation

Following regulations, local employment service centers are assigned to receive and handle documents of unemployment insurance According to the report of the Ministry of Labor, Invalids and Social Affairs, this number increased from 156.765 people in 2010 583.669 people in 2015 and achieved 763.573 in 2018 In addition, the reduction of

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Official Dispatch No 105/ TANDTC-PC&QLKH of The Supreme People‘s Court dated April 14, 2016 on the implementation of the Law on Social Insurance

343 Ministry of Labor, Invalids and Social Affairs, Summarizing report of 10 years on the implementing unemployment policy

production scale of enterprises leads to the elimination of jobs and the increase of unemployed people Thus, the number of people entitled to unemployment insurance increased, leading to the increase in the total spending for unemployment insurance In 2015, the spending was VND 4882.9 billion, an increase of 1.3% compared to 2014 The amount of 2016, 2017 and expected 2018 was VND 5.171 billion, 7.831 billion and 7.566 billion respectively The 2018 amount included 92.8% of unemployment allowance, 0.9% of support for vocational training and 4.1% for health insurance In addition, the balance of unemployment insurance fund was reported as VND 79073 billion by the end of 2018 and the fund was expected to be secured by 2020344

The current law specifies the function and obligation of employment consultation and introduction centers Accordingly, they concentrate on diversifying forms and improving processes, so the number of people consulted and introduced tends to increase and account for a relatively large proportion in the total number of people receiving unemployment insurance The figure nearly tripled from 125562 people in 2010 to 463856 people in 2015 and reached 1309429 people in 2018 The data show that the number of people consulted and introduced is still lower than those who receive unemployment allowance The consultation effectiveness of several localities is low, which cannot meet the requirements of workers Thus, it is necessary to have appropriate forms of consultation to contribute to increase the number of workers who are entitled to employment consultation and introduction

Support for vocational training has seen positive changes and the number of people supported with vocational training tends to increase The figure increased from 270 people in 2010 to 24363 people in 2015 and achieved 37977 people in 2018 This facilitates workers to improve their skills or change their profession to quickly find jobs

According to local reports, the number of people who are accepted to receive unemployment insurance tends to increase every year The figure tripled from 156765 people in 2010 526309 people in 2015 Since the Law on Employment came into effect along with the change in the calculation of the unemployment insurance period, the percentage of people who were accepted to receive unemployment insurance between 2015 and 2018 was stable with the average rate of 12.5%345

In addition, the current law stipulates the procedures for handling unemployment insurance for workers are generally timely, lawful, more and more convenient and fast, which help the unemployment insurance policy become familiar, meet the needs and rights of workers, support them when they lose jobs and find new jobs, contribute to ensure social security These procedures have started to be implemented via the Internet in accordance with stipulated schedule and time The social security agency assesses that the implementation of

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Ministry of Labor, Invalids and Social Affairs, Summarizing report of 10 years on the implementing unemployment policy and solutions in the coming time, 2019

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procedures for receiving unemployment insurance by electronic transaction reduces the implementing time and arising costs, avoiding errors of information of workers and employers On the other hand, it helps to eliminate negative activities of parties

The social security agency has also focused on the inspection of the implementation of the law on unemployment insurance Annual reports show that the social security agency has received and dealt with many applications and complaints, which comply with the legal regulations on complaint, accusation and there is no prolonged complaint

2.2.2 Weaknesses

In addition to positive results, the implementation of the law on unemployment insurance has included the following weaknesses:

Firstly, the unemployment insurance policy has mainly focused on unemployment

allowance and not paid adequate attention to preventive measures according to international practices On the other hand, the unemployment insurance policy has not transformed into a more effective employment insurance policy such as employment security programs, compensation for firms that reduce working hour instead of firing workers, supporting enterprises in setting up strategies to use and arrange workers appropriately, polices to encourage self-employed workers

Secondly, participants in unemployment insurance of the Law on Employment have

not covered workers working in the non-official sector, self-employed workers, freelancers, workers who are paid but not sign labor contracts or sign less than months contracts, workers working in agriculture, forestry and fishery They account346for 70% of all national labor force, which was 38,08 million people by July 1, 2016 Their similarities are low qualification, low income and uncertain employment

Most firms have not reported periodically on the fluctuation of labor in accordance with the Decree no 28/2015/ND-CP, so it is difficult for localities to update data on labor of their areas Because it is compulsory to wait for the reports of labor managerial agencies, the social security agency has not approached appropriately the changes in the number of workers, employment contracts and their terms Therefore, the development and expansion of participants in unemployment insurance have been untimely There are even cases in which the social security agency makes the list of workers who have not paid unemployment insurance prior to detect them in terminating employment contracts

Thirdly, regulations on supporting for training and improving skills of workers to

maintain their employment are quite inflexible, causing difficulties for unemployed people to access this system On the other hand, support for vocational training system has only focused on solving demands of workers who are receiving unemployment insurance instead of supporting them to be trained and improved their skills

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Fourthly, the situation of employers owing unemployment insurance is quite prevalent They are not fully aware of their rights and responsibilities for unemployment insurance This leads to the fact that they pay unemployment insurance tardily and owe unemployment insurance so that the social insurance book cannot be concluded, affecting the rights of workers and the implementation of the law on unemployment insurance On the other hand, there are more and more unprofitable firms not pay and owe unemployment insurance, leading to the increase in the owing amount and months

Fifthly, the payment of unemployment insurance in some localities is slow The

implementation of unemployment insurance collection is carried out monthly while the deduction to pay for unemployment insurance fund is calculated yearly Therefore, it is difficult to receive unemployment insurance347 The calculation of paying for unemployment insurance is based on the basis salary or regional minimum wage while this amount changes every year, leading to the tardiness of localities Some professional guidelines are not specific, so the conclusion of insurance book also faces many difficulties, especially for dissolved firms or those whose owners flees or detain

Sixthly, the inspection and handling of violation of unemployment insurance law have

not been carried out regularly In fact, the number of inspectors is inadequate and the qualification of inspectors is limited while the number of firms is increasing Therefore, it is difficult to inspect and handle illegal acts in social insurance in general and unemployment insurance in particular

2.2.3 Causes

Firstly,the regulations on employment often change in terms of salary, allowance and

other supplements so the activities of collecting, managing and paying unemployment insurance by common measures are not timely and prompt while the collecting and paying unemployment insurance in previous years are complicated In addition, the legal issues related to the inspection and handling of violation of the law on unemployment insurance, settling of complaints and accusation are implemented by a variety of law branches, which also cause many problems for the implementation of unemployment insurance

Secondly, awareness of unemployment insuranceof some workers and employers is

inappropriate Workers who apply for unemployment insurance mostly are unskilled workers so they may not be aware of their rights and obligations in implementing unemployment insurance policy, dishonest when they report their employment status due to the fear of losing unemployment allowance Enterprises are either aware of their rights and obligations on unemployment insurance so that they pay unemployment insurance tardily and owe unemployment insurance, leading to the fact that the social insurance book cannot be concluded, affecting the rights of workers and the implementation of the law on unemployment

insurance.Most firms have not reported periodically on the fluctuation of labor in accordance with the Decree no 28/2015/ND-CP, so it is difficult for localities to update data on labor of their areas The management of labor in Vietnam has many weaknesses and there is a lack of managerial tools, so it is difficult to control the employment status of workers For example, there are cases in which employed people are still entitled to unemployment insurance348 Therefore, it is necessary to strengthen and promote encouraging activities to raise the awareness of workers, employers and agencies in the implementation of unemployment insurance policy Besides, it is necessary to strengthen the inspection of implementation of unemployment insurance policy to detect illegal acts on unemployment insurance to have solutions to prevent and deal with timely

Thirdly, there are firms that suffer losses or terminate operation In fact, many

enterprises reduce production and then dissolve or go bankrupt due to difficulties in business activities and keeping pace with digital technology as well as the fluctuation of the market economy This leads to the increase in the number of unemployed people and thus creates challenges to the implementation of unemployment insurance system and policy On the other hand, the fact that firms not conclude the social insurance book for workers when the contracts are terminated makes it difficult for them to implement procedures for receiving unemployment insurance This results from the limited knowledge and awareness of the law of enforcement units

Fourthly,the network of vocational training institutions has not met the demand of the

society under the volatile circumstance For example, obsolete facilities and machines, weak cooperation between these centers and enterprises, old teaching methods, limited practice time These lead to the unattractive consultation and support for vocational training system, which not meet the requirements of the new era

Fifthly, it is necessary to implement employment consultation and introduction regularly and accurately so that workers can quickly return to work In fact, the number of consulted workers is not much, the number of people who are introduced to jobs accounts for a small proportion while the consultation is free This shows that the initiative of these centers is not high

3 Improving theunemployment insurance law in Vietnam under the changes of the era

Firstly, to expand the participants in unemployment insurance

According to the current law, participants in unemployment insurance include two groups, which are workers working under contracts and officials in public administrative units This regulation is aimed at workers who are at high risk of losing their jobs, especially when the society is moving towards autonomy for administrative units However, if the

orientation for the future of officials working in managerial agencies of the state is to work under the contract system, the quality and efficiency of the work will increase significantly Thus, this is the candidate to expand unemployment insurance

In addition, the regulations on unemployment insurance applied on workers working under employment contracts of at least months are not suitable for the social insurance Therefore, to expand participants in unemployment insurance, it is necessary to adjust to stipulate unemployment insurance applied to workers working under contracts of at least month Thus, the unemployment insurance system is consistent with the Law on Social Insurance

Secondly, to regulate workers who terminate their employment contracts to receive their pensions to be paid unemployment insurance

Article 49 of the Law on the Employment in 2013 stipulates that unemployment insurance does not pay for workers who terminate their employment contracts to receive their pensions under the provision of the Law on Social Insurance This shows that the unemployment insurance only guarantees workers terminating their contracts without any other income to ensure their lives Other workers terminating their contracts and receiving pensions are not participants of the regulation This is insistent with the equal and sharing principle among workers participating in unemployment insurance In fact, officials in public administrative units contribute significantly to the unemployment insurance fund while those who lose jobs and receive unemployment insurance are not much It is necessary to revise the regulation that workers terminating their contracts are entitled to unemployment insurance and have specific regulations on the receiving amount, regime and time

Thirdly, to increase the supporting period and amount for vocational training for workers

The law stipulates the current supporting period for vocational training for workers is months is not suable for the actual training and professional needs of workers This is a very short time for workers to learn a high-skilled vocation to match with the transformation of the digital technology and international integration era It is necessary to adjust the vocational training period based on the occupation, working environment and specific work and increase it to 12 months On the other hand, the law stipulates that if the cost of vocational training exceeds the supporting amount, the excess is paid by the workers This regulation is not appropriate because workers after training will work for employers so it is necessary for employers to pay for the cost of vocational training

Fourthly, to adjust the amount contributing to the unemployment insurance

surplus It is necessary for the state to gradually withdraw from the unemployment insurance fund and strengthen the role of employers Accordingly, the contributing proportion is one-third for workers and two-one-third for employers The role of the state is to sponsor the fund legally and when it is in deficit These regulated rates will facilitateworkers and employers deal with the risk of unemployment, help to reduce relying on the state and its burden

Fifthly, to adjust the regulations on the receiving amount of unemployment insurance Currently the regulations on the receiving amount of unemployment insurance seem to only focus on the ceiling but omit the minimum amount On the other hand, the regulation on the equal receiving amount of 60% every month reduces the ability to encourage unemployed people to find new jobs The Law on Employment stipulates the obligation of workers to report on seeking jobs every moth, as well as terminating allowance if they refuse introduced jobs more than two times However, there are many unemployed people that really find jobs actively at the end of the receiving allowance period Therefore, it is necessary to add specific provisions on the minimum amount of unemployment allowance, which is not below the minimum salary regulated by the Government, to ensure that this allowance really helps unemployed people to cover costs and meet basic and essential needs On the other hand, the law should also stipulate the receiving amount of unemployment insurance to be reduced gradually For example, the amount of the first months is 60% whilst the following months decrease to 55% This is a motivation for workers to be more proactive in finding new jobs, as well as helps to save a cost for the unemployment insurance fund

Unemployment is not only a problem in poor and developing countries but also in developed nations, especially when the society is affecting by the changes of the era This is a global issue and a concern of all humanity Unemployment insurance plays a significant important role as it does not only ensure the lives of workers losing their jobs but also creates opportunities for them to find new ones It thus contributes to the political and social stability, as well as promotes sustainable development of every country

References

1 Ministry of Labor, Invalids and Social Affairs, Summarizing report of 10 years on

implementing unemployment policy and solutions in the coming time, 2019

2 Official Dispatch No 105 / TANDTC-PC & QLKH of The Supreme People‘s Court on April 14, 2016 on the implementation of the Law on Social Insurance

3 Mai Dan (2018), what Vietnamese workers benefit from CPTPP, accessed on November 14, 2018, http: //thoibaotaichinhvietnam.vn/pages/xa-hoi/2018-11-14/lao-dong-viet-nam-duoc-huong-lo-gi-tu-cptpp-64311.aspx

4 MSc Truong Thi Thu Hien, Orientation to expand the participants of unemployment

5 Thai Linh (2018), Impacts of CPTPP on economic sectors, accessed on November 28, 2018, https://www.nhandan.com.vn/antuong/item/38387802-tac-dong-cua- cptpp-den-cac-nganh-kinh-te.html

6 General Statistics Office, Employment situation in the first quarter of 2019

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insurance policy, Magazine of Labor and Social Affairs, No 591+592/2019, p.20

8 Doan Xuan Truong, International law and law of several countries in the world on

unemployment insurance - Lessons for Vietnam, School-level Scientific Research,

Hanoi University of Law, 2019

9 Central Institute for Economic Management, Impacts of Industrial Revolution 4.0 on

Vietnam's human resource development, 2018

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