Hwaseung Vina: On the Way to Sustainable Growth

Hwaseung Vina invested VND3 billion to build  waste water treatment system

The Hwaseung Vina in the Nhon Trach 1 Industrial Park, Dong Nai province, which specializes in manufacturing shoes and footwear for Reebok. The company employs nearly 14,000 people. The Hwaseung Vina always takes care of its staff’s living conditions. The company there has issued clear policies pertaining to workers’ salary, lunch allowances, bonus and other social welfare benefits. Therefore, workers’ salary and rights are improved considerably. Accordingly, employees average annual income increased from 5 per cent in 2006 to 7 per cent in 2007. According to Mr. Ryu Ho Seon, Director of Organization and Administration Section, the company will give its employees the 13th salary, or Tet (Lunar New Year) bonuses.

Furthermore, the company pays special attention to the improvement of the spiritual life of its employees. It built a basketball and volleyball yard for its workers. Annually, the company plans tours for its employees to enjoy a few day off in Nha Trang, Da Lat or other places. Besides, the company has supplementary education classes for workers. The company also provides bicycle repair service free of charge for its workers. The company has upgraded its medical station which shows the responsibility to care for the health of the workers. In the other hand, the Hwaseung Vina actively takes part in social activities. The company will help build a medical station in Nhon Trach district to provide medical examination and treatment for the poor.

The Hwaseung Vina recognizes that to keep workers with the company, it always attaches importance to social welfare benefits and building good relationships between the employer and employees. All these things can urge employees to have stronger attachment to the firm. In return to the company’s care, all employees have made active contributions to the company’s growth. This contributed to boosting the companys export value in 2006 by 25 per cent against 2005 to reach US$100 million. However, the figure is still well below the target of US$120 million, which the company hoped to achieve by 2006. In the early of 2007, Hwaseung Vina has received an order from Reebok and Adidas to produce 1.6 million pairs of shoes in first two months of this year. The company’s leaders said that Vietnam’s entry into WTO will open up further opportunities for Hwaseung Vina to boost its development. Presently, Hwaweung Vina has to import raw materials from the home country. However, according to the leaders, if Vietnam’s support industry develops quickly enough to keep pace with production demands, the company will be able to buy material from local providers. Accordingly, its production cost will decrease and profit will increase, and  the workers will be much more interested in their work as well as income. The leaders of Hwaseung Vina also realized that to establish a close relationship between employees and the company as well as strengthen its brand image in the eyes of consumers, it has to take good care of the workers who do the actual work.  

Hwaseung Vina will strive to produce 13 million pairs of shoes this year, an increase of 3 million pairs compared to 2006. In order to reach an export turnover of US$130.2 million in 2007, the company will not only invest in advanced technology and equipment, but also focus on training highly-skilled workers and creating a safe and healthy working environment for its employees.

Reported by Kim Loan