Streamlining the Workforce: Effective Strategies for Managing Surplus Staff

Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh emphasized the importance of fair, humane, and harmonious policies that ensure equitable treatment for all during the restructuring and streamlining of government apparatus, thus stabilizing their lives.

On December 17, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh, Head of the Government’s Steering Committee, presided over the fourth meeting of the Committee. The meeting focused on evaluating the implementation of Resolution No. 18-NQ/TW dated October 25, 2017, issued by the 12th Central Committee of the Communist Party of Vietnam, regarding the continuous reform and reorganization of the political system for enhanced effectiveness and efficiency.

Significant Reduction in Departments and Units

Minister of Home Affairs Pham Thi Thanh Tra presented a report detailing the progress made so far. She mentioned the completion of the overall assessment report on Resolution 18-NQ/TW and the proposal for merging, integrating, and transferring functions and tasks among various organizations. Additionally, the Ministry of Home Affairs has prepared drafts related to the termination of the Party Committee’s activities and the establishment of the Government’s Party Committee, along with party committees for ministries, ministerial-level agencies, and government-affiliated agencies.

According to the proposed plan, the government apparatus is expected to comprise 13 ministries and four ministry-level agencies, representing a reduction of five ministries and five government-affiliated agencies. This restructuring will also result in a significant decrease in the number of departments and equivalent units within ministries, with a projected reduction of 500 units. Similarly, there will be 177 fewer departments in ministries and ministry-level agencies, and the number of public non-business units under ministries and intra-ministerial agencies will be reduced by 190.

Minister Pham Thi Thanh Tra emphasized that the integration and merger of government agencies will streamline management functions and address overlapping responsibilities. This reorganization is expected to reduce the number of units by 35-40%, and within these units, further streamlining will occur. The proposed direction from the government includes the elimination of general departments and equivalent organizations. The Ministry of Home Affairs is currently advising the Steering Committee on finalizing reports and proposals for submission to the competent authorities by December 25.

Minister Pham Thi Thanh Tra highlighted the critical aspect of ensuring stable lives for officials, public employees, and workers affected by the restructuring. To address this, the Ministry of Home Affairs has been working diligently to develop relevant policies and submit them to the competent authorities for timely consideration. A draft decree on policies for officials, public employees, and workers during the reorganization of the political system is currently in the works and will be presented to the authorities in the near future.

During the meeting, the Steering Committee members provided feedback to refine the report prepared by the Government’s Party Committee on the implementation of Resolution 18. They discussed issues related to the names of certain ministries after the merger and the reorganization plan for specific agencies and units. The Committee also thoroughly deliberated on the policies designed to support officials, public employees, and workers throughout the streamlining process of the political system.

Retaining Capable Officials

In his conclusion, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh emphasized the principles of fairness, humanity, harmony, and reasonable correlation in policy formulation to ensure stable lives for all. He stressed that policies should be consistent and build upon existing policies, offering better benefits than the current ones. The Prime Minister underscored the importance of not sacrificing social progress, equality, and welfare for mere economic growth. He emphasized that the well-being of the people should continually improve, with each year being better than the last, leaving no one behind.

The Prime Minister also highlighted the need to finalize encouraging policies for those who choose to retire immediately after the reorganization. Policy formulation should be linked to the responsibility of leaders in evaluating, screening, and selecting individuals for retirement, aligning with the goals of streamlining personnel and improving the quality of officials, public employees, and workers. Additionally, he emphasized the importance of strengthening the leadership and combat strength of Party organizations and members.

Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh further instructed that the reorganization of the apparatus should focus on retaining capable officials with good qualities, health, experience, and dedication. This should be coupled with effective policies to attract talented individuals to the public sector.

To accomplish the upcoming tasks, the Prime Minister assigned Deputy Prime Minister Nguyen Hoa Binh, Deputy Head of the Steering Committee, to directly oversee the completion of reports and submissions to the competent authorities. Regarding the development of policies for officials, public employees, and workers, the Prime Minister advised designing them to be easily understandable, calculable, memorable, and executable. He also emphasized the importance of effectively managing the ideology and information related to this matter.