Only 38 NGOs in HCM City Register Local Employee Recruitments with FOSCO

Though there are 132 non-governmental organizations (NGOs) in HCMC, only 38 of them have registered to recruit local employees through Service Company to Foreign Missions (FOSCO), the firm authorized to recruit and manage Vietnamese employees at foreign entities. FOSCO deputy general director Phan Tien Cong told a conference on employment at NGOs in 20 southern provinces and cities in HCMC last week that the company had got employment registrations from only 38 NGOs, with 11 of them based in Hanoi and the rest in HCMC. Only 447 employees of NGOs have been registered via FOSCO. Le Hung Quoc, chairman of the HCMC Union of Friendship Organizations, questioned whether the other NGOs in HCMC had not employed Vietnamese. Regulations of Government Decree 85/1998/ND-CP introduced between 1998 and 2014 required foreign organizations to employ Vietnamese via authorized organizations. FOSCO is authorized by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to supply labor for foreign NGOs in 20 provinces and cities from Binh Thuan to Ca Mau. In case FOSCO is unable to meet recruitment requirements, foreign organizations and individuals can directly find Vietnamese employees and then submit files to FOSCO to complete required procedures. With Government Decree 75 coming into force on September 15 last year, foreign organizations and individuals wanting to employ Vietnamese must register with FOSCO, the Service Center for Danang Foreign Affairs, the Job Service Center. Within 15 days, if the authorized organizations fail to introduce qualified Vietnamese candidates, the foreign entities can directly recruit Vietnamese and then inform the authorized organizations of their employment. According to Quoc, Decree 85 is strict as it requires NGOs in the southern region to hire people via FOSCO while Decree 75 is liberal as it does not include sanctions. Without sanctions, it is hard to manage employment at foreign entities. (http://english.thesaigontimes.vn/ Sept 29)