Currently, Japan continues to be Viet Nam's most important economic partner. Regarding investment, Japan is the third largest foreign investor (FDI), with more than 5,000 investment projects in 57/63 provinces and cities in Viet Nam, with a total registered capital of nearly 70.97 billion USD (as of July 2023). Japanese investment in Viet Nam focuses mainly on the fields of processing industry, manufacturing, electronics, high technology, electricity production and distribution, real estate business activities, wholesale and retail, and mining...

Illustrative image (internet)

According to the survey results of on the status of Japanese enterprises investing abroad in the fiscal year 2022, conducted by the Japan External Trade Organization (JETRO), 60% of Japanese enterprises in Viet Nam have plans to expand their business operations within the next 2 years. Although the economy in 2023 still has to face many difficulties, 53.6% of Japanese businesses believe that the prospect of business profits in 2023 will improve significantly.

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic and adverse impacts of the global economy, Nitori Furniture Vietnam, a Japanese-invested business operating in Quang Minh Industrial Park, Hà Nội, had to reduce its workforce by 20 per cent from more than 6,000 to 4,800. But the company has never delayed paying monthly social and health insurance premiums for its labourers.

Hà Thảo Phương, a company worker, said: “I have health insurance expenses covered and enjoy maternity benefits thanks to quick procedures supported by the human resources department.”

Japan has a concept called “lifetime employment” which means recruiting workers until they retire. Social, health and unemployment insurance play an extremely important role in retaining labourers for a long time.

Kushida Akihiro, deputy general director of Nitori Furniture, said his company started operation in 2003. His enterprise always strictly complies with Việt Nam's legal regulations.

“The full participation in social insurance, health insurance and unemployment insurance aims to ensure workers’ benefits and create conditions for them to stay over the long term. That’s also an important requirement we have set,” he told Việt Nam News.

“We have a professional human resources department that has coordinated closely with the Hà Nội Social Security Office in paying premiums and providing benefits for employees,” he said.

The company always timely and fully updates the social insurance policies from local authorities in Việt Nam, legal consulting units and the Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) business association, he said.

The Vietnam Social Security (VSS) has supported enterprises in the settlement of social insurance regimes, especially paying sickness and maternity benefits on time. There were a few cases of money transfer delay compared to the expected results. When we gave feedback, the agency promptly resolved it, he said.

During a recent dialogue between VSS and Japanese-invested firms in Việt Nam on the implementation of social and health insurance policies, VSS General Director Nguyễn Thế Mạnh said the vast majority of Japanese businesses comply with Việt Nam's legal policies, including those on social and health insurance.

In the difficult context of the pandemic and the post-COVID-19 period, FDI enterprises, including Japanese firms, have applied many solutions to maintain production stability and retain workers, making an important contribution to Việt Nam's socio-economic recovery and development, he said.

The VSS has so far served 2,112 Japanese businesses in Việt Nam, with 547,100 employees participating in social insurance, including more than 545,000 Vietnamese employees and 1,600 foreign ones

In the current trend of international integration in labor, social security and labor mobility, social insurance and health insurance policies for foreign workers in Viet Nam are one of the social security policies that the Government is paying special attention. Foreign workers in general and Japanese workers in particular, living and working in Viet Nam must be guaranteed the best rights and social security regimes. Implementing the Government's direction on bringing the Viet Nam-Japan Extensive Strategic Partnership to new heights, increasingly profound, substantive and effective in all fields, in recent years, Viet Nam Social Security always values and strengthens increasingly deep cooperation with Japanese partners in the field of social security.

Illustrative image (internet)

The results of a recent survey by Viet Nam Social Security with Japanese FDI enterprises in Viet Nam show that ensuring social insurance, health insurance and unemployment insurance for employees in general and employees working in FDI enterprises in particular is becoming increasingly important and urgent in the context of frequent fluctuation in labor markets and social security needs. Ensuring rights and social security regimes in the Japanese FDI enterprise sector is very important; in addition to ensuring and improving the quality of life for employees, it is also one of the factors that determine the Enterprise success through increasing labor productivity and improving competitiveness, contributing to promoting the country's socio-economic development sustainably. The simultaneous implementation of solutions to reform administrative procedures in recent times has brought practical benefits to participants in general and to Japanese FDI enterprises in particular. In particular, the implementation of the VssID-Digital Social Insurance application is a step that truly fits the administrative reform and digital transformation requirements of Viet Nam Social Security, bringing practical benefits to employees.

Also based on that awareness, Viet Nam Social Security always accompanies and is ready to share difficulties with FDI enterprises, including Japanese enterprises, through determination in solving social insurance, health insurance and unemployment insurance regimes for employees. Regimes and policies for employees are always guaranteed by the Viet Nam Social Security promptly and fully, helping employees feel secure in production, thereby contributing to promoting the development of each enterprise.