State salaries under the microscope

February 12, 2012 | 11:00
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The government will inspect many state-owned economic corporations’ obedience of salary- and income-related legal regulations this year.

Deputy minister of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs (MoLISA) Pham Minh Huan said under the prime minister’s recent order, the MoLISA would combine with relevant ministries to launch programmes on inspecting a series of state-owned corporations and groups (CGs) like PetroVietnam, Vinacomin and Vinatex in terms of their obedience of salary regulations.

“This is to make their obedience more transparent,” Huan said while trumpeting results of the MoLISA’s recent inspection of Electricity of Vietnam’s (EVN) obedience of salary- and income-related legal regulations.

The results of inspection, conducted from December 18, 2011 to January over EVN’s parent company and its 25 subsidiaries nationwide, shows that the giant power monopolist has made many big mistakes regarding salary and income management since 2004.

“For example, salaries, incomes and allowances for EVN staff are not suitable for many positions and sections in EVN and its subsidiaries,” said Nguyen Tien Tung, vice head of the MoLISA’s Inspection Department and head of the inspection team.

Specifically, the average salary for the production and transmission sections is double that of the distribution section. Meanwhile, the average salary for EVN’s headquarters staff was double that of the group’s parent company.

“Meanwhile the group’s inspection and management is quite lax,” Tung said.

The MoLISA also asked EVN to revise all of its salary- and income-related mechanisms and policies.

Tung also noted that: “If EVN fails to correct its mistakes, it will be heavily punished.”

The MoLISA reported the average salary of EVN staff was nearly VND5.8 million ($280.1) in 2008, over VND7 million ($338.1) in 2009 and VND7.45 million ($359.9) in 2010. Meanwhile, the average income of EVN staff was VND5.9 million ($285) in 2008, VND7.3 million ($352.6) in 2009 and VND7.62 million ($368.1) in 2010.

The MoLISA said these figures were made based on co-calculation by the MoLISA, the Ministry of Finance (MoF) and State Audit of Vietnam. Besides, the salary was determined depending on EVN’s commercial power output, meaning that if the output increased, the salary also did the same.

The salary calculation methods were stipulated by the government, under which EVN’s parent company made its payroll sheet and submitted it to the MoLISA and MoF for appraisal and approval. Meanwhile, EVN’s subsidiaries made their own payroll sheets and then submitted them to the parent company for approval.

By Thanh Dat

vir.com.vn

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