Affirming the representative role of union members and workers
Article 10 of the 2013 Constitution, amended, supplemented and effective from June 16, 2025, stipulates: "The Vietnam Trade Union is a socio-political organization of the working class and of workers; representing, caring for and protecting the legitimate and lawful rights and interests of trade union members and workers; being the sole representative of workers at the national level in labor relations and international relations on trade unions; participating in state management, socio-economic management; participating in inspection, examination, and supervision of the activities of state agencies, organizations, units, and enterprises on issues related to the rights and obligations of workers; propagating and mobilizing workers to study, improve their qualifications and professional skills, comply with the law, build and protect the Fatherland".
In which, the new content "being the sole representative of workers at the national level in labor relations and international trade union relations" not only enhances the role of the Trade Union organization but also requires strong innovations to meet new requirements.
In the context of the country entering a new stage of development, the Vietnam Trade Union organization faces unprecedented requirements. Labor structure changes rapidly; labor in the private and informal sectors is increasing; automation, artificial intelligence and digital transformation have a profound impact on jobs, income, and professional skills of workers. Along with that, labor relations operate more and more fully according to the market mechanism, requiring the Trade Union organization not only to play a good role in caring for but also to become a representative force with sufficient capacity, bravery, and modern methods to protect workers in the new environment.
The highlight in the thinking of the Trade Union organization in the 2026-2031 term is the shift from a mainly movement-based approach, traditional mobilization to a more comprehensive approach: Taking workers as the center, taking the grassroots as the action area, taking dialogue, negotiation and policies as remote protection tools, and at the same time taking digital transformation, science - technology and innovation as motivations to improve operational efficiency.
First of all, it is a strongly oriented thinking towards grassroots levels. Former Standing Vice President of the Vietnam General Confederation of Labour Tran Thanh Hai said: "The growth of the Trade Union organization is due to the synergy of many levels and many resources, but the most important thing is at the grassroots level, where businesses are associated with workers and union members to jointly nurture new values.
Therefore, the new era for the Trade Union organization must first of all be the new era for the grassroots trade union, so the operating mindset of the grassroots trade union needs to have a fundamental change according to the motto: Proactiveness is fundamental, creativity is the foundation, practicality is the goal and is facilitated more”.
This thinking requires trade union officials to leave the administrative working style, away from the grassroots level, to delve deeper into workers' lives, promptly grasp issues related to salaries, employment, housing, meals, labor safety, childcare, mental health, vocational training opportunities and promotion. When the labor structure changes, the Trade Union organization must also expand its approach, not only focusing on the state sector or large enterprises but also paying more attention to small and micro enterprises, informal workers, digital platform workers and vulnerable groups.
Another new point is the substantive representative thinking, early and remote protection. The representative role of the Trade Union in the new stage must start from the stage of participating in building policies and laws; supervising implementation; early detection of conflict risks; promoting periodic dialogue and substantive collective negotiations at enterprises.
Developing union members is an important task
The draft of the Executive Committee of the 13th Vietnam General Confederation of Labor at the 14th Congress of the Vietnam General Confederation of Labor, term 2026-2031, after recognizing the contributed opinions, set the goal of "actually developing at least 4 million trade union members", 1 million more than the draft before the opinion poll.
Developing a real increase of 4 million union members is a challenging number, requiring great efforts and promoting the core capacity of the Trade Union in collective dialogue and negotiation. In modern labor relations, dialogue is not a formality, negotiation is not a procedure. It is the process of the trade union using information, data, legal knowledge, negotiation skills and representative prestige to create specific commitments on salaries, bonuses, benefits, working conditions, working hours, skills training and labor safety.
A modern trade union must have the ability to reach workers in the digital space, where workers are increasingly using it to search for information, express their feelings, reflect grievances and access services. If the trade union is not close to workers in the digital space, the information gap may be filled by fake news, false arguments or irresponsible channels. Therefore, "near the digital space" is not just a technical requirement, but a political, social and organizational requirement.
The breakthrough to develop union members also lies in the mindset of trade unions accompanying improving labor productivity and welfare for workers. Previously, trade union activities were mainly viewed through the lens of caring for and protecting rights.
In the new period, trade unions must also participate in promoting the development of new production forces, encouraging workers to study, innovate, master technology, become "digital workers", "digital labor". Workers cannot be sustainably protected if productivity is low, skills are outdated, and the risk of being replaced by technology is increasing. The best care for workers is not only giving gifts in difficult times, but also helping them improve their qualifications, have sustainable jobs, stable incomes and adapt to change. Emulation movements among workers and laborers are elevated in the direction of linking "good labor" with "high productivity" and "good income" are urgent requirements.
Overall, the new thinking of the Trade Union organization in the 2026-2031 term all converges in one point: Building a modern, substantive, closer to workers and with higher adaptability. That is, the trade union is both steadfast in its socio-political role under the leadership of the Party, and dynamic in the market mechanism; both caring for the immediate life, and accompanying and improving the long-term capacity of workers; both protecting rights, and arousing creativity, dedication and responsibility in building the country.
The new term is a pivotal stage for the Trade Union organization to innovate itself. In the era of digital transformation, green transformation, deep integration and increasingly fierce labor competition, if the trade union wants to maintain its representative role, it must be stronger in organization, sharper in policies, more professional in cadres, more modern in methods and more humane in care.
