The Vietnamese Ministry of Labor, Invalids and Social Affairs has forecast that up to 100,000 workers would be laid off per month, mainly in the fields of tourism, accommodation and catering services, construction, transportation, processing and manufacturing.

People losing jobs are forecasted to reach 100,000 per month. Photo: quochoi.vn

The number of people filing claims for unemployment benefits increased by 32% over the same period in 2019, to nearly 690,000 in the first seven months of 2020, or nearly 100,000 per month, compared to 60,000 – 70,000 per month on average in 2019.

Some industries that see the sharpest decrease in years in the number of workers over the same period of 2019 are processing and manufacturing, accommodation and catering services, education and training, wholesale and retail, auto and motorbike repair. 

It is forecast that by the end of the year, 70% of local enterprises and 3.5 to 5 million workers will face difficulties.

In the first half this year, some 29,000 enterprises temporarily suspended operations, up 38.2% over the same period last year. About 540,000 new jobs were created, reaching 35.6% of the plan for 2020 and equal to 73.8% of the same period last year.

As of June 2020, 30.8 million people aged 15 and more were hurt by the Covid-19 pandemic. In particular, 57.3% saw their incomes reduced.

Earlier, the government has approved a VND62 trillion (US$2.6 billion) financial support package for people and businesses affected by the Covid-19 pandemic.

In the second half of this year, authorities will take further measures to boost the labor market and connect supply-demand for laborers and employers. 

Vu Quang Tho, a labor expert, recommended that it is necessary to build a job reporting system to keep businesses operating and avoid layoffs.