As part of the work of the ILO-Singapore Partnership Programme, the study visit was arranged by Singapore’s Ministry of Manpower (MOM). The Vietnamese tripartite delegation was coordinated by the ILO Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific, at the request from Viet Nam’s Ministry of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs (MOLISA).

During the visit, the Singapore National Employers Federation and the National Trades Union Congress briefed the delegates on industrial relations and the work of the National Wages Council (NWC).

The main lessons learned included:

• The NWC should give the tripartite partners enough time to study and develop their proposals and allow them to fully express their concerns before reaching its final conclusions.
• Membership of the Council should be broadened to include relevant ministries and government agencies so that its recommendations and decisions represent the common position of all tripartite partners.
• There is a great need to improve the availability and quality of wage data in Vietnam, to assist the Council’s deliberations.
• In addition to minimum wage mechanisms, collective bargaining can also play an important role in wage setting.