"No one wants to quit their job right now"
On the morning of July 11, although Hanoi was in the peak of the heat wave, the number of people applying for unemployment benefits did not decrease, but even increased sharply compared to previous months.
Workers come to declare unemployment at Hanoi Employment Service Center on the morning of July 11.
According to the appointment, Ms. CH (41 years old) and 2 colleagues were present at the Hanoi Employment Service Center (DVVL) to declare their unemployment status early.
Ms. H. sadly said: "My sister and I have been working as sales staff at a company in the book publishing industry for nearly 10 years. Our previous monthly salary of 8-10 million VND was quite good, but due to the impact of the Covid-19 epidemic, books have been sluggish and cannot be sold.
For the past 2 years, we have been looking for extra jobs. We told each other that low salaries are fine and that we should try to overcome this difficult period together, because at this age, no one wants to quit their job. By April, we could not hold on any longer, so the company gave us unpaid leave and by June, we officially laid off our employees."
According to Ms. H., during the time she received unemployment benefits, she looked for a number of jobs but found none suitable, so she temporarily stayed home to take care of the housework. However, in the long run, she will have to find another job to pay for her children's education.
Most workers who come to apply for unemployment benefits are filled with anxiety, because finding a job at this stage is not easy. Mr. Tran Van Tuan (27 years old), a former employee of a foreign-invested general merchandise trading company, shared: "My company has been operating in Vietnam for only 2 years, right at the time of the epidemic, economic recession, unsold goods, the company went bankrupt. In Hanoi alone, 35 employees had to quit their jobs."
Mr. Tuan said that he used to study at Hanoi University of Industry, majoring in automation control, but after graduating he did not work in the right field. Now, while looking for a new job, he is working as a bartender at a bar in Hanoi's Old Quarter.
"I've thought a lot about my career and future. If I can't find a job in the next 2 months, I'll probably go back to my hometown to start a business. I'm 27 years old, I can't hang around and wander around the city forever," Tuan confided.
In contrast to Mr. Tuan, Ms. Nguyen Thi Thanh (from Yen Dinh district, Thanh Hoa) worked as a worker at a leather shoe company for 8 years. Although the company had not fired her, she quit her job.
Ms. Thanh shared: "I had no choice but to quit. Everyone wants to have a stable job. The company does not allow overtime, there is no extra work, and the salary of 5-6 million VND/month is not enough to support 2 children in high school who are about to enter university. I quit my job and followed my sisters from the same hometown to Hanoi to work as a maid and hourly housekeeper. The work is harder than in the countryside, but it is better than having no money."
FDI enterprises lay off hundreds of workers
According to statistics from the Hanoi Employment Service Center, in the first 6 months of the year, the number of people applying for unemployment benefits was 43,574 people (an increase of 32% over the same period in 2022); the number of people with decisions to receive unemployment benefits was 42,892 people (an increase of 31%).
In June alone, there were nearly 10,000 applications for unemployment benefits. The number of applicants increased sharply compared to other months and the same period in previous years, even higher than during the pandemic.
Explaining the reason for the increase in unemployment, Ms. Vu Thi Thanh Lieu, Deputy Director of the Hanoi Employment Service Center, said: "The main reason is that businesses and organizations are dissolving, going bankrupt, or changing their structure. In addition, many businesses are facing difficulties due to the global economic crisis, and orders are being cut, so they do not renew contracts or terminate contracts before the deadline with employees."
According to Ms. Lieu, through collecting, analysing and recording the records of employees registering for unemployment benefits, the businesses that laid off the most workers were concentrated in the private sector and FDI enterprises. The industries that laid off the most workers included: construction; retail; tailors, embroiderers; sales staff; electronics technicians; accountants, etc.
Notably, the laid-off workers are concentrated in the group with labor contracts of 12-36 months and the group with indefinite-term contracts. The age of the laid-off workers is around 35. Although there are no enterprises laying off thousands of workers like the southern provinces, the leader of the Hanoi Employment Service Center said that hundreds of workers from FDI enterprises in the electronics sector came to complete procedures in June.
Organize many mobile job fairs
Due to the sharp increase in the number of people applying for documents, the Hanoi Employment Service Center had to increase its staff by 10 and increase overtime to process the documents. In addition, at the job exchange points, there will be staff to guide workers to submit applications for unemployment benefits online via the National Public Service Portal to reduce the number of workers coming to declare directly.
"Although the number of people has increased, there is no situation of having to jostle and push each other to queue from early morning like during the Covid-19 pandemic. Most workers who have quit or lost their jobs want to return to the market sooner instead of going to vocational training. Many people apply for benefits for 1-2 weeks and then cancel their application because they have found new jobs," Ms. Lieu informed.
Faced with the reality of increasing unemployment, the Hanoi Employment Service Center said it is collecting and analyzing data to organize job fairs in accordance with market supply and demand.
In August and September, the center plans to organize mobile sessions in districts such as Ba Dinh, Nam Tu Liem, Cau Giay, Ba Vi, Dong Anh; in addition, it will organize 1-2 specialized job fairs.
"Based on the requirements of the labor market, especially the recruitment needs of businesses, we will continue to connect with the workforce, organizing specific job fairs. The ultimate goal is to provide the most support to businesses in recruitment and workers in finding suitable jobs with income to ensure their lives. Hopefully, with the Government's macro solutions, the labor market will gradually recover," said Mr. Vu Quang Thanh, Deputy Director of the Hanoi Employment Service Center.
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