DistantNews
Support us
Vietnamese director disputes fine for holding employee's degree amid fraud claims
๐Ÿ‡ป๐Ÿ‡ณ Vietnam /Crime & Justice

Vietnamese director disputes fine for holding employee's degree amid fraud claims

From Tuแป•i Trแบป · () Vietnamese

Translated from Vietnamese, summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

At a glance

News Sources not specified Context piece
  • A company director in Quang Ngai province, Vietnam, is facing a fine for holding an employee's original university degree.
  • The director claims the employee voluntarily submitted the degree upon hiring and later refused to retrieve it after being accused of fraud.
  • The case involves a dispute over labor law compliance and the return of personal documents.

A business owner in Vietnam's Quang Ngai province is embroiled in a dispute over holding an employee's original university degree, a practice she argues was misunderstood and that the employee refused to retrieve her documents.

I will appeal because I feel the handling of the situation was not thoroughly reasonable.

โ€” Nguyen Thi Hai HaThe director of Hong Ha Trading and Services Co. Ltd. expressing her dissatisfaction with the authorities' decision.

Nguyen Thi Hai Ha, director of Hong Ha Trading and Services Co. Ltd., stated she plans to appeal a penalty, believing the authorities' handling of the situation was not "thoroughly reasonable." The issue arose when an employee, identified as T., voluntarily submitted her original degree upon being hired in August 2023 for a warehouse and cashier position. The situation escalated in February 2024 when T. resigned after the company discovered inventory discrepancies, accusing her of swapping new goods for old ones.

Ha claims that after T.'s resignation, the company attempted multiple times to contact her to resolve the inventory issue and return her documents. However, T. allegedly did not appear for clarification or to collect her belongings. The company subsequently received a summons from the Department of Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs regarding T.'s complaint about the company withholding her degree. Ha stated that despite efforts to arrange meetings and return the documents, T. remained absent.

Honestly, the company does not want to keep the original university degree. What benefit is there for the company in keeping it?

โ€” Nguyen Thi Hai HaThe director explaining her company's position on holding the employee's degree.

The case highlights a conflict between employer practices and labor regulations. While Ha insists the company had no benefit in keeping the degree and wished to return it, the law prohibits employers from holding original diplomas. The situation became more contentious when the Department of Nแป™i Vแปฅ (Internal Affairs), which now oversees labor matters, issued a decision following an inspection. Ha expressed frustration, stating that communication attempts, including sending official documents via postal service, were repeatedly refused by T., leading to the current impasse and her impending appeal.

But if I can't meet Ms. T., how can I return it?

โ€” Nguyen Thi Hai HaThe director explaining the difficulty in returning the employee's documents due to the employee's absence.
DistantNews Editorial

Originally published by Tuแป•i Trแบป in Vietnamese. Translated, summarized, and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

More Stories

From Our Blog