Joint Circular No. 01 TT/LB provides guidance on implementing Decision No. 354-CP dated September 27, 1979, which the Council of Ministers issued Decision No. 354-CP regarding hardship allowances for state civil servants to contribute to stabilizing their living conditions, creating favorable conditions for them to be enthusiastic and at ease in promoting production and being ready to fight, build, and defend the country.

JOINT CIRCULAR

Guidelines for implementing Decision No. 354-CP dated September 27, 1979, the Council of Ministers issued Decision No. 354-CP on providing hardship allowances to state employees in order to contribute to stabilizing the living conditions of these employees, creating favorable conditions for them to be enthusiastic and at ease, thereby boosting production and being ready to fight, build, and defend the country.

After exchanging opinions with relevant ministries and sectors, the General Confederation of Labor of Vietnam and the Ministry of Finance issued Circulars guiding the implementation of the aforementioned Decision as follows:

I. ELIGIBLE RECIPIENTS

1/ Workers and officials who are part of the administrative and public service establishments' staff or belong to the regular workforce of business and production units (factories, construction sites, agricultural farms, forestry farms) of the State and joint-stock enterprises that have adopted the wage system similar to state-owned enterprises; defense workers; those working under long-term contracts of one year or more and receiving wages equivalent to those of officials and workers with the same level and profession in state agencies and enterprises; officials and workers currently studying, undergoing treatment, recuperation, and receiving full or partial salary while their families have an average income below the threshold specified in Decision No. 354-CP dated September 27, 1979 of the Council of Ministers and detailed in this Circular.

2/ The following officials and workers are not eligible recipients of the hardship allowance stipulated in Decision No. 354-CP and this Circular:

- Officials and workers whose families are entitled to hardship allowance according to Circular No. 11-Thông tư-CT dated November 22, 1963 and Circular No. 826-TC/TW dated May 15, 1978 of the Central Party Organization Department.

- Officials and workers employed under short-term contracts, daily work contracts, special wage contracts, or working for foreign embassies.

- Active military personnel

- Retired officials and workers, those retired due to disability, and those receiving social insurance benefits.

Active volunteers

II. AVERAGE INCOME LEVEL FOR CONSIDERING HARDSHIP ALLOWANCE

1/ For officials and workers residing in the urban areas of Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City, Hai Phong, Nam Dinh, Bien Hoa, Vinh, Thai Nguyen, and concentrated industrial zones such as Go Dam (North Thai), Gang Thép (Thai Nguyen - North Thai), Vinh - Ben Tre (Nghe An - Nghe Tinh), Quang Ninh coal mine, and Bien Hoa industrial zone, the average monthly income per person in the family for considering hardship allowance must be less than 22 dong per month.

2/ For officials and workers residing in the urban areas of towns (including provincial capitals), townships (including district capitals), and suburban districts (belonging to the old 10% regional subsidy area) of Hanoi, suburban districts and urban districts of Ho Chi Minh City, and collective housing areas for officials and workers in rural areas, the average monthly income per person in the family for considering hardship allowance must be less than 20 dong per month.

3/ For officials and workers residing in rural areas (villages, communes including newly merged villages and communes in suburban districts of Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City), the average monthly income per person in the family for considering hardship allowance must be less than 18 dong per month.

III. CALCULATION METHODS FOR FAMILY INCOME AND NUMBER OF PERSONS ASSOCIATED WITH OFFICIALS AND WORKERS TO DETERMINE THE AVERAGE INCOME PER PERSON

1/ The total income of the family must include all monetary or in-kind income converted to money of each member of the family or the entire labor force of the family members whom the official or worker primarily supports financially. These incomes are not excluded based on who earns them or how they are earned, whether monthly, per job, per event, or seasonal throughout the year. They must be added together, then divided by twelve months to calculate the average monthly income. Specifically:

a) Wages, allowances, child allowances, regular hardship allowances, excluding injury allowances, productivity bonuses, etc., of the official or worker.

b) Retirement and disability allowances of retired or disabled officials and workers.

c) Other social allowances; scholarships, living expenses for vocational, secondary, and specialized students; orphan pensions...

d) Wages and earnings from cooperative shares, earnings from dividing profits from cooperatives, income from small-scale trade...

e) Any other remaining income of all family members.

2/ Average income per person in the family:

a) Add up all income of family members who earn income.

b) Subtract the necessary living expenses for the active official or worker, retired or disabled official or worker, or active military officer (up to the rank of major) which is 35 dong per month per person.

c) Divide the remaining amount equally among the remaining family members; the quotient is the average income per person in the family.

3/ The number of people in the family included in the calculation of average income per person includes those whom the official or worker primarily supports financially, such as spouse, children, parents, in-laws...

+ The following individuals are not counted in the number of people used to calculate the average income per person in the family:

* Those who are officials or workers already deducted for personal living expenses of 35 dong per month per person.

* Active military personnel and active volunteers receiving provisions within the military or volunteer units.

* Persons who are People's Army officers at or below the rank of Major (including armed police), shall have deducted from their individual monthly allowance 35đ/person/month.

IV- DETERMINATION OF THE AMOUNT OF SUBSIDY AND THE PROCESS OF DECLARATION, REVIEW, AND DECISION ON SUBSIDIES

1/ Determination of the amount of subsidy.

a) If a family eligible for subsidy has one person who is an officer, employee, or civil servant, they will be entitled to one subsidy (10đ).

b) If a family eligible for subsidy has two or more persons who are officers, employees, or civil servants, then:

- If they have already received one subsidy and their new average income is still lower than 22đ - 20đ - 18đ (depending on the region), they will be entitled to an additional subsidy, making it two subsidies.

- If they have already received two subsidies and the family has three persons who are officers, employees, or civil servants, with their new average income still lower than 22đ - 20đ - 18đ (depending on the region), they will be entitled to an additional subsidy, making it three subsidies...

c) Conversely, if after each subsidy of 10đ, the family's new average income equals or exceeds 22đ - 20đ - 18đ (depending on the region), they will be entitled to an additional subsidy, making it three subsidies...

  2/ Declaration:

a) For a family eligible for subsidy with multiple persons who are officers, employees, or civil servants receiving two or more subsidies, the family may entrust one person to collect all subsidies from one place (where the person entrusted works). The management unit or enterprise where the person entrusted works will examine and issue the subsidy to that person.

b) The person responsible for declaring the subsidy application:

- If the family only has one person who is an officer, employee, or civil servant, that person will declare the subsidy application under their name.

- If the family has multiple persons who are officers, employees, or civil servants, the person with the highest salary or rank among those living in the same household will declare the subsidy application under their name; if the person with the highest salary is on a long-term assignment away from home (abroad or in another province far from the family), the person with the second-highest salary living in the same household will declare the subsidy application; if there are multiple persons who are officers, employees, or civil servants but all are away from home, the person with the highest salary near the family will declare the subsidy application.

- If the family includes both officers, employees, or civil servants and military officers at or below the rank of Major (including armed police), the person who is an officer, employee, or civil servant will declare the subsidy application.

- Once every quarter, from the 20th to the 30th day of the last month of the previous quarter, the person who is an officer, employee, or civil servant declaring the subsidy application must fully and clearly declare the family's income and number of members according to the attached declaration form in this circular and submit it to the Trade Union Branch Committee and the Basic Trade Union Committee where they work or produce for review and recommendation to the head of the agency or enterprise to issue a subsidy decision.

3/ Method of examination and decision on subsidies, subsidy level:

a) At the beginning of each quarter, from the 1st to the 10th day of the first month of the quarter, based on the declaration of the person applying for the subsidy, the comments and recommendations of the Basic Trade Union Committee, and the provisions in this circular, the head of the agency or enterprise will examine and decide on the number of subsidies (each subsidy is 10đ/month) for officers, employees, or civil servants whose families have low average income and need subsidies.

b) Before signing the subsidy decision within ten days, the head of the agency or enterprise must post a list of persons eligible for subsidies and the number of subsidies for each family so that officers, employees, or civil servants in the agency or enterprise can provide feedback.

c) In cases where a person is eligible for a subsidy but there are many objections from officers, employees, or civil servants in the enterprise or agency, the decision on the subsidy may be temporarily postponed. Subsequently, the Basic Trade Union Committee must organize an investigation, conclude, and inform the public of the results. If the person declared correctly, the subsidy decision will be issued and the amount of subsidy for the months when it was suspended will be paid out. If the declaration was incorrect and did not meet the eligibility criteria for subsidy, the subsidy will be discontinued.

d) Officers, employees, or civil servants who have fully and clearly declared their family's income but whose applications were reviewed late by the head and the Basic Trade Union Committee will also receive back payments for the subsidy amounts for the months they did not receive.

đ) Officers, employees, or civil servants who have not fully and clearly declared their family's income will only receive the subsidy from the time they provide complete and valid documentation and will not be entitled to back payments.

e) Officers, employees, or civil servants who have received subsidies but are found by the public to not meet the eligibility criteria for subsidy upon verification will be required to return the amount received.

g) The subsidy level of 10đ/month and the number of subsidies for each family of officers, employees, or civil servants managed by the agency or enterprise where the person declaring the subsidy application works will be distributed together with the first monthly salary installment.

V- EMERGENCY SUBSIDY

In addition to the regular monthly hardship subsidy mentioned above, officers, employees, or civil servants who fall under the hardship subsidy category defined in Article 1 of this Circular, if they encounter sudden difficulties such as damage or loss of property due to typhoons, floods, house fires, or prolonged illness, death of parents, spouse, or children, and if their family's average income per capita is less than 27đ/month for officers, employees, or civil servants mentioned in Point 2, Section II, and less than 23đ/month for officers, employees, or civil servants mentioned in Point 3, Section II, they will be eligible for a one-time emergency hardship subsidy of 50đ to 100đ per family, depending on the extent of the damage.

The process of declaration, examination, and decision on subsidies will follow the regulations stipulated above (Article IV, Points 2 and 3).

VI- SUBSIDY EXPENSES

1/ The expenses for regular monthly hardship subsidies and emergency hardship subsidies mentioned above will be covered by the social fund from the state budget, replacing the previously budgeted hardship subsidy funds at an average of 5đ/person/year.

2/ The basis for budgeting these expenses is:

- In quarter IV/1979, agencies and enterprises that are budgeted based on the number of personnel (each allowance unit is subsidized at 10 dong) shall be reviewed and settled according to the number of officials, workers, and civil servants and the number of allowance units entitled to subsidy.

- From 1980 onwards, until salary reform is implemented, agencies and enterprises that are budgeted based on the number of officials, workers, and civil servants and the number of allowance units, shall distribute and settle according to the actual distribution amount of quarter IV/1979.

- Agencies and enterprises, sectors, and localities shall not arbitrarily expand the criteria and target groups for allocation and must strictly manage this subsidy as they would manage their agency or enterprise wage fund.

- Within 15 to 25 days from the beginning of each subsequent quarter, agencies and enterprises are responsible for reporting and statistically summarizing the implementation of the above hardship subsidy (according to the attached model sent to the Vietnam Federation of Trade Unions and the General Confederation of Labor).

VII- GENERAL PROVISIONS

1/ This Circular takes effect from October 1, 1979. Where dissemination is delayed, it shall take effect from the aforementioned date.

2/ This Circular replaces the Circulars stipulating the regular and emergency hardship allowances budgeted based on the average standard of 5 dong/person/year.

Upon receipt of this Circular, we request the Ministries, central sectors, People's Committees of provinces and centrally governed cities to coordinate with the trade unions at the same level to disseminate to all officials, workers, and civil servants and organize the review, approval, and timely and accurate distribution of hardship subsidies.

During implementation, if difficulties arise, we request the Ministries, sectors, and People's Committees at all levels to report to the General Confederation of Labor and the Ministry of Finance for research and resolution.