Productivity with purpose: Collaboration for a new era in Viet Nam

HA NOI (ILO News) - On June 16, 2025, the National Assembly of Viet Nam adopted the revised Employment Law with an overwhelming 95.19% approval rate. This achievement marks a significant milestone in Viet Nam’s continued efforts to upgrade its labour legislation and pursue a future-oriented labour market development agenda. The revised Law reinforces Viet Nam’s commitment to productive and decent employment for all while improving consistency with international labour standards.

Adoption of the 2025 Employment Law

Entering into force in January 2026, the 2025 Employment Law introduces forward-looking reforms aimed at strengthening labour market governance and increasing the effectiveness of employment policies and programmes. A core innovation of the revision is the greater flexibility given to competent government bodies to design and implement employment-support measures. This opens space for more adaptive and innovative policy solutions that can respond effectively to the needs of an evolving labour market shaped by digitalization, demographic shifts, and sectoral transitions.

While the 2025 Law represents a major step forward, several important issues remain to be further developed. Gender responsiveness in employment policies can be strengthened, and clearer frameworks for active labour market policies (ALMPs) are still needed to enhance the planning, monitoring, and management of employment programmes.

Implementation will be key. The ILO looks forward to the development of more detailed and concrete implementing regulations by the responsible government bodies. Clear guidelines, enhanced institutional capacities and dedicated budget will be essential to translate the Law’s policy directions into practice and ensure coherent, effective, and inclusive delivery of employment-support measures nationwide.

The ILO remains committed to supporting Viet Nam in this next phase, working closely with national institutions, social partners, and development stakeholders to foster a more inclusive, productive, and resilient labour market for all.

Evidence and Insights from the ILO for Viet Nam’s Employment Law

Since 2023, the ILO’s Productivity Ecosystems for Decent Work programme has coordinated the ILO’s technical assistance by generating evidence, international comparisons, and policy analysis to inform the Employment Law drafting process. This support contributes to Viet Nam’s efforts in modernizing its employment policy framework toward greater flexibility, inclusiveness, and alignment with international labour standards, particularly ILO Convention No. 122 on Employment Policy (1964).

To contribute to evidence-based policymaking, the programme produced a series of analytical studies covering gender-responsive employment policies, benchmarking of public employment services, and key labour market information issues. Many ILO’s specialists were involved and provided invaluable technical support through both direct discussions with the drafting team and technical briefs. A comprehensive technical advisory package, comprising policy briefs, thematic analyses, and international benchmarks, was formally submitted to the Government during the national consultation process in May 2024. These inputs contributed to informing the restructuring of employment-support measures, the strengthening of labour market governance, and the enhancement of service delivery mechanisms.

As part of this support, the ILO has also published a report titled International Experiences of Modernizing the Organization and Operation of Employment Services: Implications for Viet Nam. The report was prepared with support from the State Secretariat for Economic Affairs of Switzerland (SECO), the Norwegian Agency for Development Cooperation, and the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security (MOHRSS) of the People’s Republic of China.