Attending the workshop included experts and representatives from relevant ministries and agencies such as the Social Committee and Law Committee of the National Assembly, Government Inspectorate, Office of the Government, Ministry of Justice, Ministry of Home Affairs, Ministry of Finance, Ministry of Labor - Invalids, and Social Affairs, as well as the Vietnam General Confederation of Labor.…

Deputy Director General of VSS Le Hung Son delivered the opening speech of the Workshop

Opening the workshop, Deputy Director General of VSS Le Hung Son informed that in 2014, the 13th National Assembly passed the Law on Social Security, which mandated VSS to perform specialized inspections related to payment of social, unemployment, and health insurance. In accordance with this law, the Government issued Decree No. 21/2016/ND-CP on March 31, 2016, which regulated specialized inspection activities carried out by the Social Security agency.

The Inspection and Examination apparatus of VSS Industry is established based on the preexisting inspection one. At the central level, the Inspection Committee was renamed to the Department of Inspection and Examination, while at the local level, the Inspection Division was renamed to the Division of Inspection and Examination Division .

Along with the development of the VSS, the inspection and examination activities of the VSS industry have played an important role in improving the effectiveness and efficiency of sectoral management. Specialized inspections of social, unemployment, and health insurance premiums payments have effectively detected, prevented, deterred, and handled policy violations. In the past 7 years, these inspections have protected the interests of 370,000 employees, recovering arrears of 1,020 billion VND, and penalizing or recommending administrative penalties totaling over 170 billion VND.

In order to continue to improve the effectiveness and efficiency of inspection work, including that Government agencies, on November 14, 2022, the National Assembly passed the Law on Inspection, which assigned the Government to consider, decide on the establishment of an inspection agency in a Government-affiliated agency.

Carrying out the task of presiding over the development and submission of a Decree to the Government on regulations on agencies performing the specialized inspection function and inspection activities of agencies assigned to perform the specialized inspection function, during the past time, The Government Inspectorate has coordinated with relevant ministries and agencies to organize, study and develop a draft, including a proposal for the establishment of an inspection agency for VSS.

“To facilitate further discussion, idea exchange, and proposal of effective solutions for the establishment of an inspection agency in government agencies, including VSS, VSS organized a scientific workshop entitled "Proposals for the Establishment of an Inspection Agency in a Government Agency at VSS." - Deputy Director General Le Hung Son said.

Deputy Inspector General of the Government, Tran Ngoc Liem, gave a speech at the workshop.

During his speech at the workshop, Deputy Inspector General of the Government Tran Ngoc Liem highlighted the significance of the Law on Inspection, which was recently passed by the National Assembly and shall came into effect on July 1, 2023. He emphasized that this law is of great importance for VSS in establishing an inspection agency and further solidifying its crucial role in ensuring social insurance and contributing to the development of the country. Currently, the Government Inspectorate is in the process of developing a draft Decree that will be submitted to the Ministry of Justice for appraisal, and this draft will include a proposal for the establishment of an inspection agency for VSS. The ultimate goal is to establish a modern, fully authorized, and highly effective inspection agency for VSS.

During the workshop, experts and representatives from various ministries and agencies engaged in discussions and shared their views on the establishment of an inspection agency at VSS. The delegates focused on analyzing and clarifying the theoretical and legal basis, as well as the urgency and appropriate legal provisions for the establishment of an inspection agency. Practical implementation measures for establishing such an agency were also discussed in-depth. The content of the seminar discussions was diverse, rich, and valuable, providing new materials, suggestions, recommendations, and solutions for policy makers, implementing agencies, as well as for later in-depth studies.

Mr. Dinh Van Minh, Director, Legal Department, Government Inspectorate delivered a speech

During his speech at the workshop, Mr. Dinh Van Minh, the Director of the Legal Department at the Government Inspectorate, assessed that VSS has performed excellently  its specialized inspection function, as evidenced by statistics. He noted that the establishment of an inspection agency would be a significant progression for VSS, as it would increase its duties and powers. However, given the complex nature of VSS and its many unique characteristics, further study and evaluation of the organization and operation of the apparatus, from the central to local levels, will be necessary.

Ms. Nguyen Quynh Lien, Head of the Committee for Democracy-Law at the Central Committee of the Vietnam Fatherland Front, also expressed her opinion at the workshop. She stated that the legal basis for establishing an inspection agency at VSS is clearly defined in the Law on Inspection, which is an important basis for VSS to reorganize its inspection agency beyond just a specialized inspection agency. VSS is a unique government agency that operates in a vertical industry, with a large scope of activities and a target audience that encompasses the entire population. Therefore, Ms. Lien suggested that the Government Inspectorate should provide detailed regulations in their documents under the Law on Inspection, clearly defining the model of inspection agency for government agencies, especially for VSS.

Ms. Lien also emphasized that in addition to establishing an inspection agency at the VSS Administration, it is necessary and appropriate to establish an inspection agency at the provincial social security office, as there are no additional clues, staffing quotas, and indicators needed. The only change required would be to shift from the Department level to the central inspection agency and from the department to the inspection agency at the provincial level. This would help ensure that the inspection activities of VSS are synchronized and run smoothly, in line with local departments, agencies, and sectors.

Ms. Nguyen Quynh Lien, Head of the Law and Democracy Committee, Central Committee of the Vietnam Fatherland Front, spoke at the Conference

Mr. Bui Hung Thien, the Chief Inspector and Examination of Hai Phong City, highly appreciated the specialized inspection activities on social, unemployment, and health insurance in Hai Phong city over the past period. For instance, in 2022, only five specialized inspections were carried out on this content, which resulted in the collection of over 350 billion VND in late payments. Therefore, according to Mr. Thien, the establishment of an inspection agency by VSS will enhance the effectiveness of handling violations and ensure social insurance. Additionally, he suggested that besides establishing a social security inspection agency at the central level, it is also necessary to set up this agency at the provincial social security office. This move will help strengthen and supplement the local inspection force, contributing to handling violations and protecting the rights of workers more effectively.

Mr. Bui Hung Thien, Chief Inspectorate, Inspector of Hai Phong City spoke at the Workshop

At the end of the workshop, Le Hung Son, Deputy Director General of VSS, expressed his appreciation to the participants and authors who submitted articles to the workshop. He also assigned the Department of Inspection to take the lead in coordinating with relevant units based on the feedback and presentations at the workshop. Their responsibility is to receive, advise, and propose solutions to the leaders of VSS regarding the establishment of an inspection agency within the VSS Administration.

Based on the discussions and opinions presented at the workshop, Deputy Director  General Le Hung Son emphasized the crucial importance of establishing an inspection agency at VSS, especially after the National Assembly passed the Law on Inspection on November 14, 2022. As an organization responsible for implementing essential social policies such as social, health, and unemployment insurance, VSS should take the lead in implementing specialized inspections to ensure the appropriate interests of the participants and promptly detect, prevent, and handle violations related to these policies. This will help affirm VSS's position as a pioneer in the field and contribute to the country's development goals.

Overview of the Workshop

The establishment of an inspection agency must ensure the precision of tasks, people and places, avoid overlapping with the functions and tasks of other agencies on performing the specialized inspection function on social, unemployment, health insurance, and money. At the same time, there must be cohesion, connection and sharing with ministries, branches and localities in order to fundamentally change the process and way of operation, bringing new values to the people and participants of social, health and unemployment insurance, as well as increasing labor productivity and governance capacity of Vietnam's social security industry ./.