Overtime – the only way for workers to increase their income
Tran Trung Nghia, 24, from Tuyen Quang, first came to work, the company only chose overtime, because it was the only way to earn more money.
Nghia ignores businesses with income of 5-6 million VND per month, targeting only electronics companies, the recruitment notice clearly states “with overtime”. Finally, Nghia chose Goertek Vina whose income after overtime was around 9 million dong. It was July 2021, when Nghia completed two years of military service, took half a year off at home and spent a month touring the industrial estates of Bac Ninh looking for work.
“I like working late,” says Nghia, explaining that this helps her save on food because the company takes care of it. While working about two hours a day, after deducting 1.1 million dong for the room; 2 million to buy food, gas for work, the phone and the occasional drink with friends on the weekends, he will have about 6 million to send back to his hometown to be kept by his mother to “take care of later”.
Leaving the factory at 6pm, Nghia didn’t know what to do but cook, wash clothes, play with her phone, and go to bed to continue on to the factory the next day. The guy is not dating, the meeting with friends takes place on Sunday, the only day off of the week.
Nghia, 24 years old, an electronics worker in the industrial area of Que Vo (Bac Ninh) for 7 months, earning 9 million VND including overtime. Photo: Hong Chieu
The Goertek Vina company – where Nghia works – has more than 32,000 workers, mainly young people in their twenties from the mountainous provinces of North and Central North. Companies specializing in the production of electronic components in industrial groups are given priority to work 300 hours per year, according to the provisions of the Labor Code.
However, company leaders want to increase the number of hours to 400-500 hours per year, implementing annually to produce flexibly when urgent orders are needed, not monthly. “Most workers want more overtime,” said Mr. Pham Van Trung, chairman of Goertek’s union, said it was an idea voted for at union meetings, workers’ congresses and export products groups.
Unlike young workers like Nghia, Tran Thi Lan, 36, a worker at Garment Company 10, Hanoi, has three young children. She usually wakes up at 5, cooks breakfast for the whole family and then sends the twins off for delivery. At 07.30 he goes into shift, at 6 pm he leaves the workshop and goes home to feed his children. His job ended at 10 pm, went to bed, and returned to the factory the next morning.
The reel has been in operation for 10 years, Lan recently changed his position from tailor to check product quality. Earnings at the start of work were from 7 million VND, now it has increased to more than 8 million VND per month, including one hour of overtime a day, from Monday to Saturday, Sunday off.
Ms. Lan, a worker at the Garment 10 factory, earns more than 8 million VND per month after almost 10 years as a garment worker. Photo: Hong Chieu
Industrial tailors like Ms. Lan doesn’t know how much money will be paid for each hour of overtime, although payslips may appear. He didn’t pay attention, only interested in about 8 million VND per month after deducting insurance premiums and union fees. Where, 1.5 million for the cost of the room with electricity and water; 4 million to send children to school, almost 3 million to buy food.
Her husband is also a worker, earning about 5 million VND per month and not always having a job. One year of the epidemic, the 4th grade son stayed at home to study online, Lan gave him two twins, the three brothers took care of each other. The amount of VND 4 million for child care covers the cost of living for a family of 5 people. The only family activity was on Sunday afternoons, she took her children for walks around the hostel.
At a discussion session on increasing overtime hours before the adoption of the revised Labor Law in October 2019, XIV National Assembly member Nguyen Thi Quyet Tam said: “Why do workers need to work overtime? This question is quite easy to answer. It is because the current salary is not enough to meet the minimum necessities of life.” Ms Tam said the workers did not volunteer but had to work overtime to earn an income. Many people have to send their children back to their hometowns to ask their grandparents to take care of them.
Delegation Nguyen Thi Quyet Tam responded to the proposal to increase the overtime hours of Mr. Vu Tien Loc, Chair of the VCCI, at the National Assembly session in October 2019.
At the time Ms. Tam asked questions in parliament, the average monthly minimum wage in Vietnam stands at 3.51 million dong. Almost 3 years later, the minimum wage was adjusted once, increasing by 150,000-240,000 VND for the region, reaching an average of 3.71 million VND. Meanwhile, over the past year, gasoline prices have increased by one and a half times, gas tank prices have increased by 35%, cooking oil and salted fish have increased by 20-30%.
The overtime ceiling in a month was raised from 30 hours (before 2021) to 40 hours, in the future it could be increased to 72 hours, to 300 hours per year for all industries to recover production after the pandemic, he said. proposal issued by the Ministry of Manpower, Persons with Disabilities and Social Affairs.
Associate Professor Nguyen Duc Loc, Institute for Social Life Research, asks the question: If you ask workers if they want to work overtime, the answer will always be yes. But the point is they want to increase their income. Workers have no other option to increase their income other than overtime. Regional minimum wages are just a formality and have long failed to keep pace with workers’ living standards.
Workers like Nghia can squeeze out their youth in a factory with a normal 8 hour work day and a few hours of overtime every night “no problem”. But according to Dr. Loc, this is a way to erode national human resources so as to cause the workforce that has not yet entered retirement age to be exhausted, in the long run it will put pressure on the insurance, health and pension systems. .
An in-depth 2019 survey by Oxfam and the Institute of Trade Union Workers with garment workers showed that 69% of workers answered that wages were not sufficient to cover living expenses; 31% kept nothing from that month’s salary; 37% are always in a situation of borrowing from acquaintances to cover a lack of expenses for a month and 96% never or rarely go to restaurants.
“It is difficult to calculate the amount workers pay for overtime in their total monthly wages,” the report said. Because workers are paid by product and they often don’t pay attention to the number of hours worked overtime. Most workers work overtime at least one hour a day. Overtime pay accounts for about 11-16% of earnings.
If the government increases overtime, workers like Ms. Lan or Nghia will arrange overtime work as there is no other choice. They produce immediately, the salary is by product, with few products, the income is low. The amount of money saved 6 million VND per month Nghia still regularly sends back to her hometown, for several years to go to school or change jobs. “You can’t be a worker forever,” Nghia said, but didn’t know when she would leave the factory.
The government proposes to increase the number of hours worked overtime in a month by employees from no more than 40 hours to no more than 72 hours, limiting it to 300 hours per year, applicable to all industries, occupations and occupations. It is hoped that at its 9th session on March 24, the Standing Committee of the National Assembly will consider and approve the draft Resolution.
Hong Chieu
at Blogtuan.info – Source: vnexpress.net – Read the original article here
