Developing a Local Workforce in Vietnam

In setting up our new Vietnam operations, BP committed to recruiting and developing a local workforce from the local Vietnamese population. In Vietnam the oil industry is in its infancy and skilled workers are in very short supply. We had to develop a recruitment and development programme that would ensure we had the skills and behaviours necessary to operate safely and efficiently.

Practical experience was important to complement the knowledge gained through these training programmes. Short-term assignments at the construction facility in Korea and at gas terminals in either China or Indonesia allowed staff to gain experience on a live facility before our Vietnam facilities were complete.

One of the biggest challenges in operating all our facilities is safety, and so this played an integral part in the development programme. Two programmes, a Hazard photo shop in which employees were tasked with photographing and discussing hazards they saw in everyday life, and a Golden Safety Rules workshop in which actors helped to bring the rules to life, helped to enhance understanding of the importance of working safely.

We continue to face the ongoing challenge of recruiting suitably skilled individuals to maintain the safe and efficient operation of our Vietnam facility. In November 2002, we took the lead in setting up a Vietnam Process Industry Consortium. The aim of this consortium is to bring together organizations within the process industry in Vietnam to discuss common issues around training and development. This consortium will work together to establish the common skills needs of the process industry and in collaboration with local educational institutes to develop and deliver a curriculum that meets the industry’s needs.