Internal Labor Regulations (“ILR”) is document drafted by the employer that prescribe the principles of conduct for employees in the workplace.
The laws of Vietnam require that the employer employing at least 10 employees be required to register the written Internal Labor Regulations to the competent authority. In addition, some employers have a need to create the ILR for ensuring order in the workplace and labor relationship with employees. However, some employers find it difficult to develop a legal ILR in accordance with labor law.
Through this article, we would like to show you how to develop and register the ILR legally and feasibly in practice.
I. Statutory contents of an Internal Labor Regulations under the laws
Pursuant to the law, the statutory contents to be included in the ILR cover[1]:
1. Working hours and rest periods:
As for this provision, the employer shall regulate the frequent working hours for a day, for a week; work shift; starting and ending time of the work shift; overtime work (if any); overtime work in special cases; extra rest breaks; breaks between shifts; weekly days off; annual leave, personal leave, unpaid leave.
2. Workplace order:
Workplace order provision covers work area, movement during working hours; behavioral culture; dress code; compliance with the assignment of the employer.
3. Occupational hygiene and safety:
To develop this provision, the employer is required to regulate the responsibility to comply with rules and regulations, procedures and measures for assurance of occupational hygiene and safety, and fire prevention; use and preservation of personal safety equipment and other equipment serving assurance of occupational hygiene and safety in the workplace; cleaning, decontamination and disinfection in the workplace.
4. Actions against sexual harassment in the workplace; the procedure to settle sexual harassment behaviors in the workplace:
Pursuant to Article 85 of Decree No. 145/2020/ND-CP, this provision shall cover the contents of (a) the detailed harassment actions are prohibited in the workplace aligning with characteristics of the works and the workplace; (b) Responsibility, deadline and procedures for responding to sexual harassment in the workplace, including those for filing and settling complaints and accusations, and relevant regulations; (c) Disciplinary actions against perpetrators of sexual harassment and false accusations; (d) Compensation for victims and remedial measures.
5. Protection of the assets and technological and business secrets and intellectual property of the employer:
The employer shall provide the ILR with a list of assets, documents, technological secrets, business secrets, and intellectual property; responsibility, measures for protection thereof; definition of infringements upon these assets and secrets.
6. Cases in which employees may be temporarily reassigned against their labor contracts:
The employer should refer to Article 29.1 of the Labor Code for applying.
7. Violations against labor regulations and disciplinary measures:
The ILR must specify the actions considered as a violation of labor discipline and the measures against those violations.
8. Material responsibility:
In this provision, the ILR covers the cases in which the employee has to pay compensation for causing damage to or losing tools, instruments or assets; exceeding material consumption limits; compensation levels in proportion to the damage caused; persons having the competence to claim compensation.
9. The person having the competence to take disciplinary measures:
The person having the competence to take disciplinary measures as the competent person signing labor contracts on behalf of the employer under Article 18.3 of the Labor Code or the person specified in the ILR.
Of note, the employer ensures all contents involved in the ILR must be not contrary to the laws of Vietnam.
II. Registration of the Internal Labor Regulation procedure
Registration of the ILR is implemented according to the following steps[2]:
- Step 1: The employer shall conduct a dialogue meeting at the workplace toconsult with the internal employee representative organization (e.g., the grassroots trade union) under Article 41 of Decree No. 145/2020/ND-CP;
- Step 2: After developing the ILR, the employer shall send it to the internal employee representative organization and all employees. Besides, the employer also must publicly post in the workplace;
- Step 3: Within 10 days from the establishing date of the ILR, the employer shall register it to the competent authority where the employer has registered its business (This step has only forced the employers who employ at least 10 employees).
The application for registering the ILR shall consist of[3]:
- The application form;
- A copy of the ILR;
- Comments in writing of the internal representative organization of employees;
- Documents of the employer that are relevant to labor discipline and material responsibility (if any).
The competent authority will consider the contents of the ILR that are not allowed to contrast with the regulations of Vietnamese law for acceptance.
III. Validity of the ILR[4]
A registered ILR will take effect after 15 days from the date the competent authority receives the application for registering the ILR.
As for the ILR issued by the employer employing less than 10 employees, the validity of the ILR will be written in the ILR.
Our advice herein gives the employer overall regulations for developing and registering the ILR. Should you have any needs to be advised regarding the above matters, please feel free to contact us via [email protected]
[1] Article 118 of the Labor Code 2019 and Article 69 of Decree No. 145/2020/ND-CP
[2] Article 119 of Labor Code 2019
[3] Article 120 of Labor Code 2019
[4] Article 121 of Labor Code 2019
