Labour market quality yet to improve: GSO

Vietnam’s labour market quality has not yet improved with a large portion of informal workers although the employed population increased,, according to the General Statistics Office (GSO).
Labour market quality yet to improve: GSO ảnh 1Workers in a garment factory in the southern province of An Giang (Photo: VNA)
Hanoi (VNA) – Vietnam’s labour market quality has not yetimproved with a large portion of informal workers although the employedpopulation increased, according to the General Statistics Office (GSO).

As of the fourth quarter of 2023, the number of employed workersis 51.5 million, increasing by 130,400 people compared to the previous quarterand 414,600 compared to the same period last year, the GSO said in a recentreport on the 2023 socio-economic situation.

The growth is attributed to increased production and businessactivities in response to Tet (LunarNew Year) holiday demands.

Vietnam’s labour force (aged 15 and above) in 2023 counts for 52.4million people. Among them, 51.3 million people are employed, an increase of1.35% compared to the previous year.

Most of them work in services (20.3 million people), followed by industrialsectors and construction (17.2 million people), and agriculture, forestry andfisheries (13.8 million people).

The country’s total population is estimated at 100.3 million,rising 0.84% in comparison to 2022.

According to the GSO, the average monthly income in 2023 is 7.1million VND (293 USD), growing by 459,000 VND (19 USD) or 6.9% year-on-year.

There is a wage gap between workers of different genders and indifferent locations, with men earning a monthly average of 8.1 million VND (334USD) against 6 million VND (247 USD) for women.

The average monthly income for workers in urban areas is 8.7 million VND (359USD), while this figure is 6.2 million VND (256 USD) in rural areas.

The GSO report also revealed that the average income per capita in 2023 is estimatedat 4.95 million ($204) per person per month, increasing by 5.9% compared to theprevious year.

According to surveys, 30.4% of households were negatively impacted by hikingprices, while 4.6% were affected by diseases.

As of Q4-2023, the number of unemployed people in the working age is 1.06million, or 2.03% of the country’s labour force.

Particularly, with efforts to carry out comprehensive measures torecover and develop the labour market, the unemployment rate in thesoutheastern region decreased by 0.41 percentage points to 2.67% in Q4, saidthe GSO.

In HCM City, a municipality in the region and the largest economichub of the country, the unemployment rate stands at 2.91%, 0.78 percentage pointslower than the previous quarter.

Brief reports from localities also showed that the number ofworkers temporarily made redundant in Q4 also decreased, now standing at around77,800 people.

Most of them worked in foreign-invested companies (72.6%), and infootwear and textile businesses (respectively 45.7% and 25.1%).

Approximately 85,500 people lost their jobs in Q4-2023 (32,900people less compared to the previous quarter and 32,100 less compared to thesame period last year). A majority of them were working in the non-publicsector (75.2%) and in HCM City (28,100 people)./.
VNA

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