- Thua Thien Hue : Social insurance and unemployment insurance schemes help ensure social security.
- Thua Thien Hue province fines many businesses for late payment of social insurance contributions.
One case involves an employee whose employment contract at the Thuy Phuong Waste Treatment Plant has just been terminated, but the employer still owes them social insurance contributions.
At the end of September 2023, Thuy Phuong Waste Treatment Plant issued a decision to terminate the employment contracts of 7 workers. Four of the 7 dismissed workers had social insurance books and had been in arrears with contributions from the company since May 2019.
Not only those who were laid off, but all remaining workers, including the factory's management, also experienced delays in social insurance contributions.
On September 30, 2023, many former workers of the Thuy Phuong Waste Treatment Plant gathered at the plant, demanding that the investor, Tam Sinh Nghia Investment and Development Joint Stock Company, pay the outstanding social insurance contributions so that they could receive their entitlements as stipulated by law.
Ms. Cao Thi Lan Anh, a worker who has been with the Thuy Phuong Waste Treatment Plant for nearly 13 years, said that she has not yet received her maternity benefits even though her child is over 4 years old. “In 2019, I gave birth and my child is now in kindergarten, but I still haven't received my maternity benefits because the company owes me social insurance contributions. As of now, I am owed social insurance contributions for 4 years and 2 months, so I request that the employer resolve this issue and ensure our rights are protected.”
"We request that relevant agencies and departments intervene and take action to ensure social security, employment, and living conditions for the workers at the Thuy Phuong Waste Treatment Plant," suggested Ms. Le Thi Hoang Nu, a former worker at the Thuy Phuong Waste Treatment Plant.
“All the workers at the factory work extremely hard in a hazardous environment. We sympathize with the current difficulties of the unit, but the factory owner needs to resolve the issue and pay our social insurance contributions in full,” said Nguyen Van Thu, a former worker at the Thuy Phuong waste treatment plant.
The Thuy Phuong Waste Treatment Plant has temporarily suspended almost all operations since 2018, but a large amount of untreated waste still remains.
According to our research, the Thuy Phuong waste treatment plant - a branch of Tam Sinh Nghia Investment and Development Joint Stock Company in Thua Thien Hue - has been in operation since 2007, with a capacity of over 200 tons of waste per day and night.
This facility was once a pioneer in processing and recycling waste into fertilizer. From its inception until around 2018, the plant operated quite efficiently, contributing to waste treatment for Hue City, reducing the burden on landfills at Thuy Phuong landfill, and creating jobs for more than 140 workers.
However, since 2018, the Thuy Phuong waste treatment plant has faced many difficulties. The plant has completely stopped receiving new waste from Hue Urban Environment and Construction Joint Stock Company.
The factory is operating at a reduced capacity, trying to process all the waste it has already received. As a result, the working hours and days of the employees are gradually decreasing, and their income is not guaranteed.
Factory workers said that since 2022, they have only had work 2-3 days a week, operating just one furnace, earning about 1.2 million VND per month.
Following difficulties, the number of workers at the Thuy Phuong Waste Treatment Plant has decreased sharply (due to layoffs or voluntary resignations).
Following the "layoffs" at the end of September 2023, the factory was left with only 12 employees, including both workers and administrative and managerial positions. Of these, 10 were enrolled in social insurance, but their contributions had been delayed since May 2019.
Speaking with reporters, Mr. Dang Van Tien, Director of the Social Insurance Department of Huong Thuy town, said that the insurance agency has repeatedly worked with the leaders of the Tam Sinh Nghia Investment and Development Joint Stock Company branch, and has also sent written requests urging the factory to complete the payment of social insurance, health insurance, unemployment insurance, and occupational accident and disease insurance for its employees.
The Social Insurance Office of Huong Thuy town has requested businesses to make monthly payments of outstanding contributions and to develop a plan for paying the remaining debt to the Social Insurance agency in accordance with regulations.
According to Mr. Nguyen Dang Hai Thien, Deputy Director of the Social Insurance Office of Huong Thuy town, as of September 30, 2023, the branch of Tam Sinh Nghia Investment and Development Joint Stock Company still owed social insurance, unemployment insurance, and occupational accident insurance contributions for 14 employees, totaling over 1 billion VND, including 355 million VND in interest due to late payments. However, the company still transfers 6.3 million VND each month to pay health insurance contributions for its employees.
Prior to 2016, the Thua Thien Hue branch of Tam Sinh Nghia Investment and Development Joint Stock Company also owed social insurance contributions for 29 employees, totaling over 2.2 billion VND.
The company was subsequently sued and forced to pay all insurance contributions for its employees, but it is now still in arrears with payments to the remaining workers.
Currently, the Thuy Phuong waste treatment plant is operating only this single incinerator to process the remaining waste.
Regarding the reason for the delay in paying social insurance contributions for employees, the branch of Tam Sinh Nghia Investment and Development Joint Stock Company recently sent a letter to the Social Insurance office of Huong Thuy town.
In the document, the company stated that it had stopped receiving waste and had been inactive for many years, since Q3/2018, and therefore had no source of income. During the years it was still operating, the parent company had to subsidize the losses of the Thuy Phuong waste treatment plant.
Specifically, Tam Sinh Nghia Company has not yet received payment from the Hue City People's Committee for waste treatment fees for the third quarter of 2018 (over 2.4 billion VND).
Therefore, the business requested the Social Insurance agency to postpone the payment of the company's social insurance contributions until the Hue City People's Committee pays for waste treatment.
According to the head of the Social Insurance agency in Huong Thuy town, if a business has ceased production and business operations, it must submit documents to the Social Insurance agency to remove all employees participating in social insurance, health insurance, unemployment insurance, and occupational accident and disease insurance from the time of business cessation.
Based on the company's records, the Social Insurance agency will stop calculating late payment interest as per regulations; at the same time, it will finalize the social insurance records for employees up to the point where contributions have been made, thereby ensuring their basic rights.
However, to date, the Thuy Phuong waste treatment plant has not submitted an application to cease its production and business operations.
"We sympathize with the difficulties faced by businesses. However, businesses must also develop a roadmap and promptly complete the payment of outstanding social insurance contributions and interest as required, thereby ensuring the legitimate rights of employees," said Mr. Dang Van Tien.
From a unit once praised and a pioneer in applying new technologies for waste treatment without landfilling and recycling products beneficial to society (biofertilizer), the Thuy Phuong Waste Treatment Plant is now like a neglected stepchild, abandoned without mercy.
Regarding the factory area, we witnessed firsthand the abandoned and dilapidated workshops; the advanced machinery, which had been out of operation for many years, had many parts that were rusted.
It is suggested that state management agencies and trade unions at all levels in Thua Thien Hue should coordinate with their counterparts in Ho Chi Minh City, where Tam Sinh Nghia Investment and Development Joint Stock Company is headquartered, to address this issue and ensure the rights of the workers.
On the other hand, the Hue City People's Committee also needs to quickly complete the repayment of debts to businesses so that they have the funds to take care of the lives of their employees.
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