The unemployment rate in Vietnam in the third quarter of 2021 has increased far beyond the usual 2% figure.
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The unemployment rate in Vietnam exceeds the usual 2% figure
The National Assembly’s Committee emphasized that the development and promulgation of documents aimed at improving institutions in the labor sector basically followed the set schedule. Moreover, many policies to support citizens, employees, and employers have been promulgated and implemented.
In addition, it is forecasted that by the end of 2021, the percentage of trained workers and the percentage of trained workers with degrees and certificates will meet the target assigned by the National Assembly. In which, the percentage of trained workers with degrees and certificates exceeded the target by about 1% (the target is 25.5%, so far it has reached 26.1%).
In the first nine months of 2021, the country’s labor force aged 15 and over is 50.4 million people, down 0.2 million people compared to the same period last year. The labor force of working age was 44.5 million people, a decrease of 1.1 million people compared to the same period last year, equivalent to 2.4%.
Workers who have been trained at the “beginner” level or higher in the first nine months of 2021 are 13.1 million people, accounting for 26.1% of the labor force, up 0.8 percentage points over the same period last year.
In the first and second quarters of 2021, the rate of unemployed workers in working-age tends to increase compared to 2020 but still fluctuates around 2%. The unemployment rate in Vietnam’s urban areas continued to be below 4%.
In the third quarter of 2021, the fourth outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic and prolonged social distancing in many localities pushed the unemployment rate in Vietnam far beyond the usual 2% figure.
In which, the unemployment rate in Vietnam’s working-age in urban areas was 5.54%, an increase of 2.18 percentage points compared to the previous quarter and an increase of 1.60 percentage points over the same period last year.
The Social Committee emphasized that in the third quarter of this year, the number of laborers working in the economy decreased sharply compared to the previous quarter and the same period last year.
Self-employed group increases
The number of self-employed workers in the third quarter of 2021 was 5.2 million (an increase of nearly 1 million compared to the previous quarter and nearly 2 million compared to the same period last year).
These workers are mainly from rural areas, most of whom did not have degrees or certificates (accounting for 92.9%). Women accounted for 62.9% and 58.6% of working-age (more than 3 million/5.2 million people are self-employed).
The report states: “In the context of an increasingly demanding labor market, with high requirements for skills, the opportunity for this group of workers to get a job in the labor market is very small.”
Another important point is the rate of unemployment in Vietnam and underemployment in the working-age has reached the highest since the first quarter of 2020. Unemployment, underemployment, and unstable employment have severely affected the income and life of workers during the lockdown.
Especially, manual workers, informal sector workers, poor households, and other disadvantaged groups are the ones who suffer the most.
Average worker income is the lowest in 10 years
The report states, the average worker income in the third quarter of 2021 was significantly lower than that of the second quarter of 2020 (5.2 million VND compared to 5.5 million VND). Meanwhile, the average worker income recorded in the second quarter of 2020 reached the lowest in the past 10 years.
Previously, the report of the General Statistics Office indicated that, for salaried workers, in the third quarter of this year, the average monthly income was 6 million VND/month, less than 780,000 VND compared to the previous quarter and less than 510,000 VND compared to the same period last year.
In which, the income of male workers is 6.4 million VND/month, female employees are 5.5 million VND/month. In general, for the first nine months of 2021, the average monthly income of salaried workers is estimated at 6.7 million VND/month, less than 11,000 VND compared to the same period last year.
Source: Cafef
