VZCZCXRO6409
RR RUEHCHI RUEHDT RUEHHM RUEHNH
DE RUEHHI #0309/01 0770434
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 170434Z MAR 08
FM AMEMBASSY HANOI
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 7422
INFO RUEHHM/AMCONSUL HO CHI MINH 4456
RUCNASE/ASEAN MEMBER COLLECTIVE
RUEHAM/AMEMBASSY AMMAN 0031

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 HANOI 000309 
 
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SIPDIS 
 
STATE FOR EAP/MLS AND G/TIP 
 
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TAGS: PHUM PGOV TIP ELAB KWMN KCRM SMIG PREL VM
 
SUBJECT: GVN REACTS TO LABOR CASES IN JORDAN, MALAYSIA 
 
REFS:  A) HANOI 0246; B) HANOI 0247; C) HANOI 0249 
 
HANOI 00000309  001.2 OF 003 
 
 
¶1. (SBU) Summary: The GVN is reacting to two recent high-profile 
labor cases, one involving 176 female garment workers on strike in 
Jordan and one regarding Vietnamese worker deaths in Malaysia.  On 
March 13, Dao Cong Hai, Deputy Director General, Department of 
Overseas Labor of the GVN Ministry of Labor, Invalids and Social 
Affairs (MOLISA) gave Poloff updates on these cases.  A GVN 
inter-ministerial delegation is in Jordan working with Jordanian 
labor officials as well as the International Organization for 
Migration (IOM) and International Labor Organization (ILO) to 
resolve this issue.  According to MOLISA, the GVN will assist any 
overseas Vietnamese worker who wishes to return to Vietnam.  GVN 
officials report that, while in general workers who break the terms 
of their contracts could face financial penalties, in this case it 
was the owner of the factory who broke the terms of the contract so 
the workers should not face any penalties.  In response to the 
reports of a number of worker deaths in Malaysia, GVN Deputy Prime 
Minister Truong Vinh Trong on March 10 instructed MOLISA, MFA and 
the Ministry of Public Health (MPH) to launch an immediate joint 
effort together with the Vietnamese Embassy in Kuala Lumpur to 
address the issue and report to the government on the reasons behind 
the deaths as soon as possible.  Malaysia is the largest destination 
country for overseas Vietnamese workers, with over 120,000 working 
primarily in construction, manufacturing and textiles.  Though the 
GVN understands the issue of labor trafficking and has taken good 
steps to rein in labor recruitment firms, concerns remain about 
worker protections.  End summary. 
 
GARMENT WORKERS ON STRIKE IN JORDAN 
----------------------------------- 
 
¶2. (SBU) Vietnamese export labor is increasing steadily in the 
Middle East, with between 400 - 500 overseas guest workers in Jordan 
itself, mostly in the textile industry. The GVN has export labor 
MOUs with Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Oman; Bahrain is pending.  The GVN 
has no export labor MOU with Jordan, which is a new market for 
Vietnam; the first Vietnamese workers there had arrived only five 
months ago, and a new group came out in the New Year, according to 
MOLISA. 
 
TROUBLE IN JORDAN 
----------------- 
 
¶3. (SBU) In late February, 176 female Vietnamese garment workers 
went on strike in Jordan over wages and work conditions.  According 
to news reports on February 19, the strike turned violent as rival 
groups of Vietnamese workers allegedly attacked each other and then 
fought with Jordanian police.  Several workers and police were 
injured.  The workers alleged that the employer, W&D Apparel 
Company, violated the terms of their contracts, paying them less 
than stipulated and requiring them to work significant overtime. 
The GVN has no Embassy in Jordan, but it dispatched regional MFA and 
MOLISA representatives to meet with the workers and collaborate with 
Jordanian officials to resolve the crisis.  MOLISA also requested 
the two Vietnamese labor recruitment firms, Footwear Joint Stock 
Company and Vietnam Coal Joint Stock Company, to send "crisis teams" 
to Jordan. 
 
¶4. (SBU) In a March 13 meeting with Poloff, Dao Cong Hai, MOLISA's 
Deputy Director General, Department of Overseas Labor told Poloff 
that the situation in Jordan was not yet resolved but that 
negotiations to resolve the crisis were ongoing, and a 
newly-established salary plan for the workers held hope.  According 
to Hai, MOLISA and MFA delegations are in Jordan working with 
Jordanian labor officials as well as IOM and ILO.  The owner of the 
employing firm is Taiwanese, Hai said, and both Vietnamese labor 
recruitment firms involved in the case have valid licenses from 
MOLISA.  However, Hai said, there was a dispute on how salary 
payments were stipulated in the contracts and then actually paid, 
which triggered this particular crisis. 
 
¶5. (SBU) According to Hai, the employer in Jordan noted that the 
workers' skill levels varied tremendously and so he arbitrarily went 
to a quota-based system, relating salary directly to productivity. 
This angered a number of the workers and many went on strike, 
resulting in an eventual scuffle between rival Vietnamese worker 
groups and then with Jordanian police.  After initial negotiations 
with the employer and an agreement to raise salaries, some of the 
workers went back to work, but Hai said a core group of holdouts was 
"forcing" the majority to stay on strike. 
 
¶6. (SBU) Separately, the GVN is quietly telling us that "external 
troublemakers" were involved in sparking the work action.  After the 
conclusion of a separate meeting on other issues on March 14, 
Consular Department DG Duong Tri Dung told the DCM that the NGO Boat 
People SOS had instigated Vietnamese workers in Jordan to strike by 
 
HANOI 00000309  002.2 OF 003 
 
 
promising them that the U.S. Embassy in Jordan would admit them for 
political asylum if they served as instigators.  We understand that 
the Vietnamese Embassy in Washington is relating a similar line in 
discussions with the Department. 
 
GOVERNMENT POLICY RE: CONTRACTS 
------------------------------- 
 
¶7. (SBU) Hai told Poloff that contract responsibility is complicated 
when Vietnamese workers go overseas.  There are three main players 
and contracts involved: between the worker and the destination 
employer, between the worker and the licensed Vietnamese labor 
recruitment firm, and between the recruitment firm and the 
destination employer.  Each party must respect the terms of each 
contract they sign.  If the worker violates the terms of the 
contract, he or she may be financially penalized by the company, and 
sometimes MOLISA has to step in to negotiate a financial resolution. 
 Hai said that in no cases are workers jailed or physically abused 
for contract violations.  MFA will assist any overseas Vietnamese 
worker that wishes to return to Vietnam, Hai said.  He added that in 
practice, however, workers involved in disputes or other 
difficulties are "encouraged" to stay in country and work things out 
with the employer. 
 
¶8. (SBU) Hai explained that it is not uncommon for Vietnamese 
workers to become homesick, for example.  However, if they break the 
terms of their contracts, there are financial damages for the 
companies who paid for them to get there.  Hai said financial 
penalties on workers who abandon their contracts and "break the law" 
exist and are sometimes levied.  Hai clarified that the employer has 
to meet the contract conditions - if it is not, then workers who 
abandon their contracts cannot be penalized, although it is best to 
try to negotiate and avoid these situations where possible.  In 
addition, there is a Labor Court in Vietnam where workers may file 
grievances. 
 
WITHOLDING OF TRAVEL DOCUMENTS AN ONGOING ISSUE 
--------------------------------------------- -- 
 
¶9. (SBU) The normal practice in Vietnam is for an accompanying 
representative of the Vietnamese "sending company" or recruitment 
firm to withhold the passports of its contracted workers once they 
enter the labor destination country.  Poloff was told that this is 
done for "security" purposes (so workers do not lose them as they 
are not used to holding passports) and also so workers do not 
abandon their position to go to another country or employer.  Hai 
admitted that MOLISA does not have regulations on this.  He said 
that MOLISA tells the recruiters not to withhold workers' travel 
documents, but they usually ask MOLISA for permission to do this and 
MOLISA acquiesces. 
 
¶10. (SBU) Regarding concerns about forced labor and individuals 
being forced to remain in a country where they no longer want to 
live, Hai said that any worker who does want to return to Vietnam 
may do so granted certain conditions are met and, as in the Jordan 
case, MFA will assist workers in crises to return to Vietnam. Hai 
pointed out that many workers may use an overseas labor contract as 
a ruse to immigrate to a third country and this can damage the GVN's 
relations with that country and cause problems for the recruitment 
firm. 
 
WORKER DEATHS IN MALAYSIA - A SEPARATE ISSUE 
-------------------------------------------- 
 
¶11. (SBU) Malaysia is the largest destination country for overseas 
Vietnamese workers, with over 120,000 working primarily in 
construction, manufacturing and textiles.  A February BBC News 
article which reported 107 Vietnamese worker deaths in Malaysia last 
year and over 300 since 2004 sparked heavy press play in Vietnam and 
raised public concerns.  In response, on March 10, GVN Deputy Prime 
Minister Truong Vinh Trong sent an official letter to MOLISA, MFA 
and the Ministry of Public Health (MPH) requesting their immediate 
joint efforts to work with the Vietnamese Embassy in Kuala Lumpur to 
address the Vietnamese worker deaths.  The letter also requested a 
report to the government on the reasons behind the deaths as soon as 
possible. 
 
¶12. (SBU) MOLISA and MPH had sent a delegation to Malaysia in 2004 
to explore export labor conditions.  Hai said the delegation's 
conclusion was that, while conditions of employment were adequate, 
workers' living conditions were not.  Poor housing, sanitation and 
long commutes were common, and employers were asked to improve those 
conditions.  In addition, as a result of that delegation's report, a 
GVN decree on health conditions and screening for overseas workers 
was issued. 
 
¶13. (SBU) Hai said when the GVN looks at its overseas worker health 
 
HANOI 00000309  003.2 OF 003 
 
 
screening system in comparison to other export labor countries, it 
is comparable.  Nevertheless, MOLISA and MPH have already agreed on 
certain steps to review and improve worker health screening this 
year.  In addition, Hai said the 107 deaths are not "statistically 
significant" given the 120,000 Vietnamese workers in Malaysia and 
that the journalist "exaggerated the situation."  MOLISA also 
compared the statistics with reported worker deaths from other 
export labor nations, and found them to be comparable. 
 
¶14. (SBU) The worker deaths in Malaysia are from multiple causes, 
Hai said, including occupational accidents, traffic accidents, 
pre-existing medical conditions not picked up on examination (such 
as heart defects), the difference in the weather, and heavy drinking 
by workers on weekends.  Hai said it is not uncommon for Vietnamese 
workers to distill their own rice wine, and they are sometimes 
inadvertently poisoned.  Hai said that in Malaysia workers 
compensation insurance is low and it takes a long time for 
Vietnamese families to get reimbursed.  This had led many Vietnamese 
to complain to the government and to the media about work conditions 
in Malaysia, in particular. 
 
¶15. (SBU) Poloff raised the issue of reports of gangs and organized 
crime operating in the Vietnamese worker community in Malaysia.  Hai 
said that these problems do exist, and the GVN Ministry of Public 
Security (MPS) is aware of the problem and working with its 
counterparts in Malaysia to combat it.  He noted that one of the 
problems is that Vietnam and Malaysia have a visa waiver program, so 
criminals can easily travel to Malaysia and attempt to extort money 
from workers there. 
 
COMMENT: QUICK REACTION BY GVN, ROOM FOR IMPROVEMENT 
--------------------------------------------- ------- 
 
¶16. (SBU) As part of its economic development drive, Vietnam is 
hoping to ramp up export labor from 75,000 workers leaving each year 
to go abroad in 2007 to 110,000 by 2010.  These two labor cases and 
the GVN's reaction to them show the GVN's heightened sensitivity to 
its international image, as well as its need to address public 
concerns.  While the GVN's quick response to address these 
situations is positive, the regular withholding of workers' travel 
documents remains a significant concern.  Vietnam has cooperated 
effectively with the international community to address sex- and 
foreign bride-related trafficking in persons, but it still has a 
long way to go in building up a legal system where all workers are 
protected and have well-understood and protected rights to petition. 
 The domestic news focus on these issues is a very positive 
development.  In the case of worker deaths in Malaysia, we expect it 
to drive further improvements. 
 
MICHALAK