Community-based networks help Vietnamese women migrant workers better protect their rights

HA TINH, Viet Nam — “I have seven sisters and brothers. All of us have worked abroad, like 80 per cent of young people in my village," said Thuy Tien, 29, a mother of two in Thach Long commune, Hong Linh district, Ha Tinh - a rural poor province from the North Central region of Viet Nam.

“I used to work in a restaurant abroad for 10 years with a monthly salary of 300 dollars. My salary was much lower than other migrant workers because I didn’t have a work permit,” Thuy Tien recalled.

She worked in another Asia-Pacific country and returned home after all loans were paid in 2019, but she wishes to work abroad again - this time, in Europe. Her story is common in Ha Tinh province where the number of women migrant workers is very high. However, she was not counted in the national statistics on international labour migration and thus she could not benefit from government policies such as joining pre-departure training or from the fund for overseas labour, which covers documented migrants.  

“Lacking migration documents and/or knowledge on gender-based violence, legal information and peer connections makes women migrant workers vulnerable,” said Khuat Thu Hong, a gender expert and director of Institute for Social Development Studies (ISDS), a non-governmental research institute in Viet Nam.

In early 2021, Thuy Tien joined a network of 20 women migrant workers in Thach Long commune, Hong Linh district, Ha Tinh province. There are three other similar networks established in this province, with the aim of raising community awareness on safe migration, especially among women. With support from Spotlight Initiative and UN Women through ISDS, 60 core members from four networks received training and shared knowledge on gender equality, the prevention and response to gender-based violence, the rights of migrant workers, and ways to access information and support services in both countries of origin and destination.

“In my commune, we have been operating various clubs such as the Gender Equality Club; When Mothers Are Away Club, Policies and Legislation for Women Club which can support labour migration in some ways. The peer networks that have been set up with support from the Safe and Fair programme have made direct contributions to enhancing safe migration and women’s agency in my commune where about 500 women have been working overseas," said Ms Nguyen Thi Huong, President of Thach Long Commune Women’s Union.

Thuy Tien, who now is an active member of the network, can easily list the different risks of violence women migrant workers should watch out for when engaged in labour migration. She says that she has learned a lot from the trainings, as well as from her peers.

As a result, she has decided to work in Germany as a documented migrant. That route will cost her around 10,000 USD, including fees for learning a language, air ticket and visa - but she said it's worth it: “This is safer, and our rights will be protected,” she shared.

“The fee is big, but it helps to reduce many risks during my journey in Europe. I can get the money back with a good salary. If something goes wrong, I can report it to the police to claim my rights and seek help,” Thuy Tien said.

According to the ILO’s General Principles and Operational Guidelines for Fair Recruitment, migrant workers should not be charged directly or indirectly for any costs related to their recruitment. This is also supported by the ILO Private Employment Agencies Convention, 1997 (No. 181).

By Thao Hoang

Originally published by UN Women