A client conducts a banking transaction at Maritime Bank. Workers in the finance, banking and insurance sectors receive the highest salaries in the country, the ministry said. (Photo: VNS)Workers in the finance, banking and insurance receive the highest average salaries in the country, according to the latest survey by the Ministry of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs.

Employees of these industries receive VND4.9 million (US$230) per month, whereas workers from agricultural and forestry sectors receive VND3.5 million ($160) per month, the lowest average salary according to the study.

Carried out in July of last year, the ministry's survey included 1,660 enterprises with at least 10 workers in 17 central cities and provinces across the country, including Ha Noi, Hai Phong, Quang Ninh, Dak Lak, HCM City and Can Tho. Its results were announced yesterday in a press meeting in Ha Noi.

Several different kinds of enterprises were referenced in the survey, including state, corporate, foreign direct investment (FDI) and private companies.

Begun in 2004, the survey aimed to help managers to create policies on salary and minimum wage adjustment, said Tong Thi Minh, director of the ministry's Department of Labour and Salary.

"In general, the workers' salary this year is stable and up compared with last year, but it increased by different amounts between different kinds of companies," said Minh.

Workers' salaries in state companies increased by 8.6 per cent, whereas workers' salaries in FDI companies increased by 11 per cent and those in private companies increased by 12.5 per cent.

"However, the salary gap between different professions and positions has become larger and larger," she said.

In 2006, salaries of managers in FDI companies made 10 times as much as employees', but this year they made 21 times more. The gap between manager and employee salaries in state companies has grown from six to eight times in recent years, according to the survey.

Cities and provinces having developed labour markets such as HCM City, Vinh Phuc, Da Nang and Binh Duong saw the salary gap strongly widened between different job positions more than in other provinces, said Minh.

"The increasing salary gap between skilful workers, managers and workers doing simple work showed that enterprises paid more attention on encouraging outstanding workers to uphold their capacity," she added.

However, companies should continue to research and complete their policies on management and salary to ensure that salaries would be adjusted together with productivity, work quality and efficiency, she said.

"The department is scheduled to conduct a survey every quarter in the following years to collect more exact and regular statistics about salaries in the labour market, in order to have proper policies on labour and wages," said Minh.

Source: VNS