Vietnam Covid-19 Outbreak – Legal Guide to Employment Issues

Please download our guidance on the following employment Covid-19 issues here.

This guidance is written by Nguyen Hoang Duong, Nguyen Bich Ngoc, Quach Mai Phuong, and Nguyen Quang Vu.

1. Employer’s general responsibility to maintain a safe workplace during Covid-19 outbreak?

2. How to deal with employees confirmed to be positive for Covid-19?

3. How to deal with an employee who is in quarantine due to Government order?

4. How to deal with an employee who violates “Covid-19” regulations (e.g., making an untrue medical declaration, or avoiding quarantine) and is later on tested positive?

5. How to deal with employees who are suspected to have or be exposed to Covid-19 but are not subject to quarantine requirements?

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Written by Nguyen Quang Vu On In ,

Vietnam Covid-19 Outbreak - The Legal Secrets of Vietnam’s Success

Undoubtedly, Vietnamese people can be proud of the society’s collective success in combating Covid-19 outbreak (less than 300 confirmed cases and no death after three months since the first confirmed case). Newspaper reports have attributed Vietnam’s success to many things including Government’s decisive and consistent policy, comprehensive quarantine and contact tracing, and high-level of awareness and cooperation by Vietnamese people. However, not much has been said about the legal framework that underpins Vietnam’s success. In this post, we will describe the legal framework which deals with infectious disease and epidemic such as Covid-19 in Vietnam. This post is written by Nguyen Hoang Duy and edited by Nguyen Quang Vu.

Law on Prevention and Control of Infectious Diseases 2007

The Law on Prevention and Control of Infectious Diseases 2007 was issued by the National Assembly in 2007. Laws issued in Vietnam are not always perfect. However, the fact that there is a law issued by the highest authority in Vietnam about pandemic a long time ago (probably after the SARS outbreak in 2003) demonstrates that Vietnam has given serious thought about how to deal with a pandemic.

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Written by Nguyen Quang Vu On In ,

Vietnam Covid 19 Outbreak - How to deal with an employee who violates “Covid-19 regulations” (e.g., making untrue medical declaration, or avoiding quarantine) and is later on tested positive?

Available remedies

The employer may consider:

· terminating the violating employee’s labor contract by way of dismissal; and

· requesting the violating employee to compensate for damages.

Dismissal

Under the Labor Code 2012, an employer is permitted to apply dismissal as a form of dealing with breach of labor discipline where the employee is guilty of conduct (a) causing serious loss and damage, or (b) which threatens to cause particularly serious loss and damage to property or interests of the employer.

An employee, who breaches the Government’s “Covid-19” regulations such as making inaccurate mandatory medical declaration or avoiding applicable quarantine requirements and is later on tested positive for Covid-19 (the violating employee) may cause material disruption and damages to the employer.

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Written by Nguyen Quang Vu On In ,

Vietnam Covid-19 Outbreak - How to Deal With Employee Who Is In Quarantine Due To Government Order?

Employees being quarantined at Government facilities

Vietnamese authorities require:

  • all persons who have been in direct and close contact with a confirmed Covid-19 patient (commonly referred in Vietnam as F1 Suspects) to be put into mandatory quarantined at Government facilities; and

  • all persons who have been in direct and close contact with a F1 Suspect to be self-quarantine at home (commonly referred in Vietnam as F2 Suspects).

The standard quarantine period is 14 days.

For F1 Suspect, there following options may be available:

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Written by Nguyen Quang Vu On In ,