* Concept:
Depending on the approach, method of operating the economy and the level of economic development, people have different concepts about wages.
a. In the previous centralized bureaucratic subsidy economy, people believed that:
Wages are a part of national income expressed in money, divided among workers in a planned manner, on the basis of the law of labor distribution.
This concept is popular in socialist countries with centralized command economies. Before the renovation period (1986), our country also applied this concept. However, when moving to a market economy when labor was recognized as a commodity, the concept of wages had fundamental changes.
b. The International Labor Organization (ILO)'s view on wages holds that:
Salary is money that an employer pays to an employee in a certain amount regardless of the actual working time, usually paid monthly or semi-monthly.
c. According to modern concepts, wages and salaries can be understood as follows:
Salary is the amount of money paid to employees on a fixed and regular basis according to the unit of time (week, month, year). Salary is usually paid to managers and technical staff.
* Function of salary:
a. Wages must ensure the reproduction of labor:
The reproduction process is carried out by paying workers through wages. The report of labor reproduction is to maintain and develop labor, meaning that the amount of wages received by workers is not only enough to live but also enough to improve all aspects of themselves and partly for accumulation.
b. Function of stimulating workers:
Guaranteed wages contribute to creating a reasonable structure in the entire economy, encouraging the development of industries and territories. When workers are paid fairly, it will create passion, enthusiasm and enthusiasm for work, promote creative work spirit, self-study to improve professional qualifications, and link individual responsibility with collective interests and work.
c. Monitoring function:
By paying wages to employees, employers can monitor and control whether employees are working according to their organization's plan, to ensure that the wages spent are highly effective.
The state monitors labor through a wage system that ensures the rights of workers when they complete their work. Especially in cases where employers, due to pressure and profit, seek to reduce costs, including wages paid to workers, this needs to be addressed immediately.
d. In addition to the above functions, salary also has a number of other functions such as:
Economic leverage function, payment function, labor value function, labor regulation function.
