16-17 Nov 2020, Seminar on Establishment Constructive Industrial Relations at Lao Women’s Union Training Center.

Protection – related organisations should be better informed about workers’ rights when it comes to negotiating working conditions and upholding the rights and interests of workers, a workshop heard on Tuesday. This was the message delivered by the Director General of the Department of Labour Protection under the Lao Federation of Trade Unions, Mr Phonesane. He was addressing a workshop about conditions in the construction industry, supported by the Japan International Labour Foundation.

The workshop was part of efforts to bolster workers’ rights and protection through the cooperation of all protection-related organisations. These include the Lao Federation of Trade Unions, Ministry of Labour and Social Welfare, and the Lao National Chamber of Commerce and Industry. Mr Phonesane said many workers are not sufficiently protected and are employed in unsafe workplaces with unregulated sanitation and hazardous conditions because there is still a lack of cooperation among labour protection-related organisations. Director General of the Labour Management Department under the Mini s t r y o f Labour and Social Welfare, Mr Phongsaysack Inthalath, said the workshop played an important role in helping low-income workers because many of these workers still do not enjoy sufficient protection under the law.

Mr Phonesane (centre) , Mr Phongsaysack Inthalath co-chair (left) and Ph.D. Xaybandith RASPHONE co-chair  (right) the workshop on Tuesday.

The government wanted more workers to make use of legal services concerning their rights, but many were unable to do so, he added. All labour protection related organisations are important in helping to protect workers’ benefits and rights under government policies. This will allow workers to collectively bargain and obtain their fair share of benefits and be given security measures against risks to employment and wages. For many years workers have not had their rights protected and have not been able to bargain with their employers or local authorities because they do not have sufficient support from the relevant organisations.

Increasing numbers of workers are unfairly treated by their employers and businesses but the extent of the problem is difficult to judge because the government doesn’t have exact statistics. According to the Lao Federation of Trade Unions, many challenges remain in protecting workers’ rights given that trade unions have been established in only 30 percent of the 124,870 private businesses in Laos. At present, Laos has over 551,200 workers, many of whom are unskilled or have few skills. About 70 percent work in the industrial sector.

Press Release: Vientiane Time

Photo: LNCCI