On April 25, 2017, in Hanoi, Vietnam , the GLWC and Social Accountability International (SAI), in partnership with the ERC – The Research Center for Employee Relations, conducted a validation event for its Vietnam Urban and Rural living wage studies. This event appealed to stakeholders across a range of industries as the estimates created cover all production in Ho Chi Minh City for economic zone one and nationwide for economic zone four.
In attendance at the event were a range of representatives from Government, Labour Unions, Producers and Suppliers, Brands and Retailers, NGOs, Certification Bodies, and the Press. Key groups were consulted in the days leading to the event to ensure that major concerns could be understood directly before bringing together the range of stakeholders that would need to be engaged to drive action on living wage. Specifically, SAI, supported by the research team at ERC that led this GLWC living wage study conducted private consultations for the following stakeholders prior to the group validation event:
- Auditing bodies
- Trade union (VGCL)
- Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI)
- Ministry of Labour Invalids and Social Affairs (MOLISA)
- Ho Chi Minh City Export Processing Zone Authority (HEPZA)
- Vietnam Leather, Footwear, and Handbag Association
- SA8000 Certified Factory
The group validation event was led by the ERC’s Do Quynh Chi in Vietnamese with English translation provided. The GLWC was represented at the event by the lead organisation on the urban Vietnam study, Social Accountability International (SAI). SAI’s Rochelle Zaid and Stephanie Wilson assisted with an agenda that included a presentation of the living wage methodology and research study, a panel discussion, interactive break-out sessions and Q&A.
The goal of this session was to ensure uptake of the living wage estimate and to get any feedback on key elements that might need to be reviewed before release. Overall the report was very positively received and has resulted in a request for additional living wage benchmarks in Vietnam Economic zones 2 and 3. If you are interested in helping to fund this work so that we can ensure accurate living wage estimates for all of Vietnam, please contact Michelle Bhattacharyya, coordinator for the Global Living Wage Coalition at Michelle@globallivingwage.org.
