How are businesses fined for manipulating the process of establishing trade unions?

Legal Consulting Department of Lao Dong Newspaper answers:

Clause 2, Article 41, Decree 283/2026/ND-CP stipulating penalties for administrative violations in the fields of labor, social insurance, and Vietnamese workers working abroad under contracts (effective from September 10, 2026) stipulates as follows:

2. A fine of 20 million VND to 40 million VND shall be imposed for one of the following acts:

a) Intervening, manipulating the process of establishing, electing, developing work plans or organizing the implementation of activities of grassroots employee representative organizations, including financial support or other economic measures to invalidate or weaken the performance of the representative function of grassroots employee representative organizations or discriminate between grassroots employee representative organizations;

b) Mental threats or other measures that are detrimental to the trade union organization.

Clause 1, Article 7 of Decree No. 283/2026/ND-CP stipulates the level of fines and principles of application for repeated administrative violations as follows:

1. The penalty level stipulated for administrative violations specified in Chapter II, Chapter III and Chapter IV of this Decree is the penalty level for individuals; except for cases specified in: Article 8; Article 9; Clause 3, Article 10; Clauses 3, 4, 5, 6, Article 19; Clauses 2, 4, Article 36; Clause 1, Article 37; Clauses 1, 5, 6, 7, 8, Article 38; Clause 3, Article 42; Clauses 6, 11, Article 48; Article 49; Clauses 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, Article 50; Clauses 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, Article 52; Clause 4, Article 53 of this Decree is the penalty level for organizations. The penalty level for organizations is 2 times the penalty level for individuals.

Thus, from September 10, 2026, businesses with acts of interfering and manipulating the process of establishing trade unions will be fined up to 80 million VND.