1. What is internal labour regulations?
Currently, the labor laws does not stipulate the definition of the internal labor regulations, but it specifies the main contents, including (i) working hours and rest preriods; (ii) order at the workplace; (iii) occupational safety and health; (iv) actions against sexual harassment in the workplace; (v) protection of the assets and technological and business secrets and intellectual property of the employer; (vi) cases in which reassignment of employees are permitted; (vii) violations against labor regulations and disciplinary measures; (viii) material responsibility; and (ix) the person having the competence to take disciplinary measures (Clause 2 Article 118 of Labor Code 2019).
The above provisions play a crucial role in labor relations. Therefore, it can reckon that internal labor regulations are documents issued by the employer, expressing the rules of conduct in the labor relations that the employee must comply with, which is one of the important documents on the labor of the enterprise.
2. Registration internal labor regulations
a) What are the cases of registration of internal labor regulations?
According to the provisions of Clause 1 Article 118 and Clause 1 Article 119 of the Labor Code 2019, an employer that has at least 10 employees shall issue written and register the internal labor regulations.
b) The procedure of issurance and registration of internal labor regulations
Step 1. Consulting the employee representative organization (for where there is an employee representative organization)
Step 2. Issurance of internal labor regulations
Step 3. Submission of the application for registration of internal labor regulations (within 10 days from the date of issuance of internal labor regulations)
Step 4. Amended, supplied or re-registered request by a competent authority if the labor regulations are illegal (the competent authority shall notify and guide within 07 working days from the date of receipt of the dossiers) or The relevant authority issues a receiving document of the internal labor regulations. The enterprise notifies internal labor regulations to employees and publicly post main contents in the necessary workplace.
Note:
- Upon receiving notices and instructions from the competent authority on the amendment, supplementation, and re-registration of internal labor regulations, the employer must consult consult the employee representative organization (if any) before re - applying for registration of the internal labor regulations.
- The internal labor regulations shall come into force after 15 days from the day on which the satisfactory application is received by a competent authority.
c) Authorities
The employer shall submit a dossier of registration of internal labor regulations at the labor authority of the province (the labor authority of the district in case of authorization) where business registration is applied for. Currently, in Ho Chi Minh City, there is an authorization from the Department of Labors, War Invalids and Social Affairs and Division of the Labors, War Invalids and Social Affairs of districts, and Thu Duc City to receive dossiers for internal labor registrations. For other provinces and municipalities, employers need to check the authorization information.
If the employer has branches, units or business locations in diffirent provinces shall send the registered of internal labor regulations to the labor authority of the province (the labor authority of the district in case of authorization) where the branches, units or business locations are located.
d) Dossiers
- The application form
- Internal labor regualations
- Comments of the representative organization of employees
- Documents of the employer that are relevant to labor discipline and material responsibility (if any)
3. Sanctions for failure to register internal labor regulations
According to Point b Clause 2 Article 19 of Decree No. 12/2022/ND-CP dated 17/01/2022 on penalties for administrative violations against regulations on labour, social insurance, and Vietnamese guest workers, in case failing to follow procedures for registration of internal labour regulations as prescribed by law, the employer will be fined from 5,000,000 VND to 10,000,000 VND. Note that this fine only apply for a violating individual, a violating organization that incurs a fine which is twice as much as that imposed upon a violating individual (Clause 1, Clause 3 Article 6 of Decree 12/2022/ND-CP).
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