Circular 29/2021/TT-BLDTBXH classifies workers according to working conditions

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Circular 29/2021/TT-BLĐTBXH is a legal normative document signed by the Minister of MOLISA on December 28, 2021, and effective from April 15, 2022.

MINISTRY OF LABOR – INVALIDS AND SOCIAL AFFAIRS ——————————————————- No.: 29/2021/TT-BLĐTBXH

THE SOCIALIST REPUBLIC OF VIETNAM Independence – Freedom – Happiness ————————————————————- Hanoi, December 28, 2021

 

CIRCULAR

Prescribing the classification standards for labor based on working conditions

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Pursuant to the Law on Occupational Safety and Health dated June 25, 2015;

Pursuant to Decree No. 14/2017/ND-CP dated February 17, 2017, of the Government, defining the functions, tasks, powers, and organizational structure of the Ministry of Labor – Invalids and Social Affairs;

At the request of the Director General of the Department of Work Safety;

The Minister of Labor – Invalids and Social Affairs promulgates the Circular prescribing the classification standards for labor based on working conditions.

Chapter I: GENERAL PROVISIONS

Article 1. Scope of application

This Circular prescribes the classification standards for labor based on working conditions.

Article 2. Subjects of application

 
1. Employers and employees as specified in Article 2 of the Law on Occupational Safety and Health.

 

2. Organizations that perform the assessment and classification of labor based on working conditions.

 

3. Other organizations and individuals related to the assessment and classification of labor based on working conditions.

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Chapter II: CLASSIFICATION OF LABOR BASED ON WORKING CONDITIONS AND METHODS, PROCEDURES FOR DETERMINING WORKING CONDITIONS

Article 3. Classification of labor based on working conditions

 
1. Types of working conditions
    
   • Occupations and jobs that are especially heavy, hazardous, and dangerous are those with working conditions classified as types V, VI.

    

   • Occupations and jobs that are heavy, hazardous, and dangerous are those with working conditions classified as type IV.

    

   • Occupations and jobs that are not heavy, non-hazardous, and non-dangerous are those with working conditions classified as types I, II, III.

 

2. Principles for classifying labor based on working conditions

The classification of labor based on working conditions must be based on the results of the assessment and determination of working conditions according to the method prescribed in this Circular.

Article 4. Purpose of using the method for classifying labor based on working conditions

The method for classifying labor based on working conditions issued together with this Circular is used for the following purposes:

 
1. Developing, amending, supplementing, or removing from the List of heavy, hazardous, and dangerous occupations and jobs, and especially heavy, hazardous, and dangerous occupations and jobs (hereinafter referred to as the List of Occupations).

 

2. Classifying labor based on working conditions for heavy, hazardous, and dangerous occupations and jobs, and especially heavy, hazardous, and dangerous occupations and jobs under the responsibility of the employer to implement regimes for occupational protection and healthcare for employees as stipulated in Clause 3, Article 22 of the Law on Occupational Safety and Health.

Article 5. Organizations assessing working conditions

The organization assessing working conditions must be an organization that meets the conditions for operating in the field of workplace environmental monitoring as stipulated in the Law on Occupational Safety and Health.

Article 6. Methods and procedures for determining working conditions

The assessment and determination of working conditions shall be carried out according to the following procedure:

 
1. Determining the name of the occupation or job that needs to be assessed and its working conditions determined.

 

2. Assessing working conditions according to the system of indicators for working conditions:
    
   • Step 1: Identifying the factors that have a biological impact on employees in the system of indicators for working conditions prescribed in Appendix I issued with this Circular (hereinafter referred to as Appendix I).

    

   • Step 2: Selecting at least 06 (six) characteristic factors corresponding to each occupation or job. These factors must ensure that they reflect all 3 groups of factors in the system of indicators for working conditions prescribed in Appendix I.

    

   • Step 3: Selecting 01 (one) indicator for each characteristic factor selected in Step 2 to conduct the assessment and assign a score, based on ensuring the following principles:
      
     • The scale for evaluating the severity, harmfulness, and danger of each factor is a 6-point scale (six points) prescribed in Appendix I. The greater the severity, harmfulness, or danger, the higher the score.

      

     • If the employee’s exposure time to the factors is less than 50% of the working shift time, the score is reduced by 01 (one) point. For toxic chemicals, electromagnetic fields, vibration, noise, ionizing radiation, pressure changes, and infectious factors, the classification score is reduced by 01 (one) point when the exposure time is less than 25% of the working shift time.

      

     • For factors where a permissible exposure time is prescribed, the score is reduced by 01 (one) point if the actual working exposure time is less than 50% of the permissible exposure time.

      

     • For factors where multiple indicators (from 02 indicators or more) can be used for assessment, only 01 main indicator is selected for assessment and scoring; other indicators may be assessed for reference, to supplement data for the main indicator.

 
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  • Step 4: Calculating the average score of the factors according to the formula:

In which:

X: The average score of the factors.

n: The number of factors assessed in Step 3 (n≥6)

X₁, X₂,…X_n: The score of the first, second,…,nth factor.

 
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  • Step 5: Synthesizing the results into a form according to the mẫu prescribed in Appendix II issued with this Circular and determining the working conditions based on the average score of the factors (X) as follows:
     
    • X ≤ 1.01: Working condition type I;

     

    • 1.01 < X ≤ 2.22: Working condition type II;

     

    • 2.22 < X ≤ 3.37: Working condition type III;

     

    • 3.37 < X ≤ 4.56: Working condition type IV;

     

    • 4.56 < X ≤ 5.32: Working condition type V;

     

    • X > 5.32: Working condition type VI.

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Chapter III: IMPLEMENTATION ORGANIZATION

Article 7. Responsibilities of the Department of Work Safety

 
1. Based on the proposals of employers and sector/field managing ministries, the Department of Work Safety shall preside over, and coordinate with relevant agencies under the sector/field managing ministries and research organizations on occupational safety and health to review and assess the List of Occupations to propose to the Minister of Labor – Invalids and Social Affairs for consideration and decision on the amendment, supplementation, or removal from the List of Occupations as stipulated in Article 22 of the Law on Occupational Safety and Health.

 

2. Conduct regular, periodic, and unscheduled inspections, examinations, and supervision of working condition assessment activities in accordance with the law.

Article 8. Responsibilities of the Department of Labor – Invalids and Social Affairs

 
1. Coordinate with relevant agencies to disseminate and guide enterprises in the locality to implement this Circular.

 

2. Inspect, examine, and report on working condition assessment activities in the locality in accordance with the law.

Article 9. Amendment, supplementation, or removal from the List of heavy, hazardous, and dangerous occupations and jobs, and especially heavy, hazardous, and dangerous occupations and jobs

 
1. The amendment, supplementation, or removal from the List of Occupations must ensure the following principles:
    
   • The review and assessment must be conducted for occupations and jobs belonging to a specific sector or field.

    

   • The sampling process for review and assessment must be carried out in a manner suitable to the type and size of the production, business, or service establishments and representative of the sampling region/area.

    

   • The results of the review, assessment, and classification of labor based on working conditions used to propose the amendment, supplementation, or removal from the List of Occupations must be the results of the review and assessment conducted within a period of no more than 12 months up to the month of the proposal.

 

2. Based on the results of labor classification according to the method prescribed in this Circular, if necessary to amend, supplement, or remove from the List of Occupations, the employer shall send a written request to the relevant sector/field managing ministry for consideration and synthesis, and simultaneously send it to the Ministry of Labor – Invalids and Social Affairs.
    
   • Documents to be sent with the proposal for amendment, supplementation, or removal from the List of heavy, hazardous, and dangerous occupations and jobs, and especially heavy, hazardous, and dangerous occupations and jobs:

    

   • Summary of the current status of specific occupational titles and jobs in the sector/field and comparison with the List of Occupations issued by the Minister of Labor – Invalids and Social Affairs; reasons for proposing amendment or supplementation.

    

   • Data on measurement and assessment of characteristic factors of working conditions for the occupational titles and jobs proposed for amendment or supplementation, and the form synthesizing the results according to the mẫu prescribed in Appendix II issued with this Circular.

    

   • Synthesis table of proposals for amendment and supplementation of the classification of heavy, hazardous, and dangerous occupations and jobs, and especially heavy, hazardous, and dangerous occupations and jobs according to the mẫu prescribed in Appendix III issued with this Circular.

 

3. Sector/field managing ministries shall review heavy, hazardous, and dangerous occupations and jobs, and especially heavy, hazardous, and dangerous occupations and jobs under their management; consider the opinions of employers to propose the amendment and supplementation of the List of Occupations suitable to the socio-economic development, science, technology, and management in each period, and send them to the Ministry of Labor – Invalids and Social Affairs.

 

Article 10. Responsibilities of the employer and relevant agencies

 
1. The employer shall conduct the initial review, assessment, and classification of labor, and when there is a change in technology or production organization process leading to a change in working conditions, or when conducting a risk assessment on occupational safety and health in accordance with the Law on Occupational Safety and Health and discovering new hazards or harmful factors arising compared to the previous assessment, but must ensure that the review, assessment, and classification of working conditions are performed at least once every 05 years.

 

2. For occupations and jobs at the workplace that are on the List of Occupations and for which the employer has implemented measures to eliminate or mitigate the impact of heavy, hazardous, and dangerous factors, the employer shall organize the assessment and classification of labor and propose it to the Ministry of Labor – Invalids and Social Affairs for consideration and feedback on the results of the labor assessment and classification. The documents prescribed in Clause 2, Article 9 of this Circular must be enclosed.

 

3. Organize the assessment and classification of labor according to the labor classification method issued with this Circular.

 

4. Employers and relevant agencies and organizations are responsible for fully implementing the regimes for employees working in heavy, hazardous, and dangerous occupations and jobs, and especially heavy, hazardous, and dangerous occupations and jobs in accordance with relevant laws.

 

5. For occupations and jobs that have been assessed and classified according to the provisions of Clause 2 of this Article and no longer have the characteristic features and working conditions of heavy, hazardous, and dangerous occupations and jobs, and especially heavy, hazardous, and dangerous occupations and jobs, the employer is not required to implement the regimes for employees working in heavy, hazardous, and dangerous occupations and jobs, and especially heavy, hazardous, and dangerous occupations and jobs, after receiving the feedback from the Ministry of Labor – Invalids and Social Affairs.

Article 11. Implementation provisions

 
1. This Circular takes effect from April 15, 2022.

 

2. During the implementation process, if any problems arise, please report them to the Ministry of Labor – Invalids and Social Affairs for consideration and resolution./.

 

Recipients: – Prime Minister, Deputy Prime Ministers; – Office of the National Assembly; – Office of the President; – Government Office; – Central Office and Party Committees; – Supreme People’s Procuracy; – Supreme People’s Court; – State Audit Office; – Ministries, Ministerial-level agencies, Government agencies; – Central Committee of the Vietnamese Fatherland Front; – Central Agencies of Mass Organizations; – People’s Councils, People’s Committees of provinces and centrally run cities; – Departments of Labor – Invalids and Social Affairs of provinces and centrally run cities; – Economic Groups and Special-Class Corporations; – Department of Law Dissemination and Enforcement (Ministry of Justice); – Official Gazette; Government Portal; – Information Center (for posting); – Archives: VT, ATLĐ.

FOR THE MINISTER DEPUTY MINISTER Le Van Thanh

 

 

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Appendix I: SYSTEM OF INDICATORS FOR WORKING CONDITIONS AND SCORING METHOD

(Issued together with Circular No. 29/2021/TT-BLĐTBXH dated December 28, 2021, of the Minister of Labor – Invalids and Social Affairs)

 

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Some notes when using the indicator table:

 
1. Regarding temperature: Occupations and jobs performed in air-conditioned rooms or places with cold supply systems are assessed according to two temperature ranges.

 

2. Data on physical, chemical, and biological factors need to be collected at 3 appropriate times.

 

3. Psychophysiological indicators need to be collected from rationally designed experiments with instruments and means that ensure the required accuracy.

 

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Appendix II

(Issued together with Circular No. 29/2021/TT-BLĐTBXH dated December 28, 2021, of the Minister of Labor – Invalids and Social Affairs)

 

Name of the proposing agency:…………………………………………………………………………………..

FORM FOR SYNTHESIZING RESULTS OF MEASUREMENT AND ASSESSMENT OF WORKING CONDITIONS

Name of the assessed occupation/job:………………………………………………………………

Name of the unit where the assessment was conducted:………………………………………………………………………………

No.	Factor/Indicator	Survey Results		Adjustment by time		Score	Notes
		Measurement Result	Score based on Measurement Result	Exposure Time	Deducted Score
1	2	3	4	5	6	7 = 4-6	8
…

 

Classification:……………………………………..

Date…….. month….. year……

Proposing Agency

(Signed and sealed)

 

 

 

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In case 1 occupation/job is assessed in multiple locations, 01 result form shall be recorded for each location.

 

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Appendix III

(Issued together with Circular No. 29/2021/TT-BLĐTBXH dated December 28, 2021, of the Minister of Labor – Invalids and Social Affairs)

 

Name of the proposing agency:………………………………………

SYNTHESIS TABLE OF PROPOSALS FOR CLASSIFICATION OF HEAVY, HAZARDOUS, AND DANGEROUS OCCUPATIONS AND JOBS, AND ESPECIALLY HEAVY, HAZARDOUS, AND DANGEROUS OCCUPATIONS AND JOBS

 

No.	Name of Occupation/Job	Characteristics of Working Conditions	Score	Proposed Classification	Notes
1
2

 

…., Date…. month…. year…..

Proposing Agency

(Signed and sealed)