CO-506696 Long term overall objective: The ability to recover from Covid-19 impacts, resilience and negotiation capacity of workers, especially female workers in the apparel and footwear sector in Vietnam has increased.

Short term outcome:Workers  have  increased  awareness  on labor and  social  protection rights and their demands  for improved labors tandards and COVID19 social support policies for migrant  workers are acknowledged by companies and governmental bodies.

Result 1: Organize and provide capacity building for workerCBOs

Activity 1.1:  Mobilize voluntary and active core workers in HCMC and Binh Duong to form three worker CBOs.  The project willwork with communities and local organizations (such as trade union, women union to identify workers for potential outreach capacityand train other workers in their factories). The project will support them to form into three CBOs.
Activity 1.2.:  Conduct workers’ needs assessment: the project will support the three CBOs to conduct needs assessments with workers in their factories aiming at identifying the understanding of labor rights and social protection, and issues and concerns related to their rights.  A Kobo Toolbox-based survey questionnaire will be developed, taking 10-15 minutes to complete.Approximately 150-200 workers in the community will participate in the assessment using the snowball method.
Activity 1.3.: Develop and implement capacity building plan for the three workers-led CBOs:  Based on the workers’ needs assessment result, the project will be working with the three CBOs to develop and implement capacity building for members of these CBOs.

Activity 1.4.: Conduct four one-day trainings for the three CBOs: on the specific knowledge and information on labor standards and social protection to be informed by the assessment, and on group organization andmanagement, teamwork and communication skills. Prior and post training assessments will be conducted to measure increased awarenessand capacity of workers.

Result 2: Awareness raising and trainings for workers

Activity 2.1:  Organize face to face communicationevents on labor standards and social protection, specific content is informed by the need assessment (activity 1.2). With support from the project’s master trainers, CBOs members will co-facilitate the communication events. CBO members will reach out and invite their peers to the event.

Activity 2.2.: Organize online communication events and trainings to workers through existing online platforms: a number of workerswork in shifts, and not being able to join community offline events, while they are very active on existingonline worker platforms. The project will also reach out to them to provide them with information on labor standards, social protections, mental healthcare, and trainings on social skills.

Result 3: Workers and CSOs actively engage in multi-stakeholder dialogues
Activity 3.1: Collect feedbacks of workers on the governmental support policies to workers affected by COVID19. Oxfam is currently conducting this survey, aiming at generating stronger evidence to push for the improvement of the government policies.
Activity 3.2:Carry out research and survey to collect feedbacks of workers on working conditions (working hours and wage). The project willcarryout a survey on working conditions focusing in key southern and northern provinces that AF sector are operating.
Activity 3.3: Organize one dialogue between workers and companies on living wage and working conditions at factory level:  based on issues raised by workers through surveys. The project will work with local trade unions to organize dialogues between workers and companies on living wage and working conditions to improve companies’ policies and practices.
Activity 3.4: Organize one national dialogue between workers, trade unions and CSOs, with companies and governmental bodies to address issues raised by workers. With the evidence generated from activity 3.1, 3.2 and 3.3, the project will organize the national dialogue and follow up withpolicy briefs on the governmental support policies to workers affected by COVID19 and working conditions (working hour and wage).  The robust evidence will push for the improvement in policy and practices of companies and the government. In the long term, these will feed in the discussion of the Domestic Advisory Group (DAG) of the EU-VN FTA.