The Vietnam General Confederation of Labor (VGCL) has a high membership level and has long been officially recognized as part of the political system in Vietnam. However, the changes in the economic framework associated with the ongoing privatization process and growing low-wage manufacturing base in private and foreign enterprises has had an immediate impact and put pressure on VGCL to develop effective strategies to truly represent the interests of workers in Vietnam. Over the years, the VGCL has taken different changes and reforms to overcome these challenges. Using the power resources approach while analyzing the efforts of VGCL to develop its »capabilities« to strengthen and mobilize its power resources, this paper aims to explain and theorize how the decision to »change« has been made and realized and, to what extent, gains have been made for VGCL. Apart from the findings of what have been done and achieved by VGCL, this paper also aims to emphasize the importance of pooling its limited resources into core union activities and echoing the voice of the workers to sustaining success.
Full-length Study (PDF) : Enhancing and Mobilizing Structural and Organisational Power to Better Protect the Rights and Interests of Workers in Vietnam by Dong Xuan Hieu, Pham Tuan Phuc and Erwin Schweisshelm
http://www.fes.de/cgi-bin/gbv.cgi?id=13642&ty=pdf
Forced Into a Complicated Transition by Dong Xuan Hieu, Pham Tuan Phuc and Erwin Schweisshelm
https://www.fes.de/index.php?eID=dumpFile&t=f&f=31116&token=55655d743cab37bbfe46a292217ed486e9542428
Forzados a una transición complicada by Dong Xuan Hieu, Pham Tuan Phuc and Erwin Schweisshelm
https://www.fes.de/index.php?eID=dumpFile&t=f&f=31117&token=f33f41829fdd30029811c5cb56d44f1fdb495444
Dong Xuan Hieu, Pham Tuan Phuc and Erwin Schweisshelm
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