Workers have to send their children back to their hometowns due to lack of schools.

A kindergarten class for workers' children at Bac Thang Long Industrial Park, Hanoi . Photo: N. Ha.

According to a survey by the Institute of Workers and Trade Unions, there are currently nearly 400 industrial parks (IPs) nationwide with more than 4 million workers. Many workers work in the processing and manufacturing industry from the time they are single until they get married and have children. In two IPs such as Hanoi and Dong Nai, the rate of workers getting married and having children is very high, up to 60-70%. This creates a huge demand for education for workers' children at preschool , primary and secondary levels.

Ms. Nguyen Thi Hoa - Kim Chung commune (Dong Anh district, Hanoi) used to be a worker in Thang Long Industrial Park, but due to difficult conditions, her husband is also a worker, and the lack of care for her two children, she had to quit her job and stay home to sell online. Ms. Hoa said that the salary of a worker is 5-6 million VND/month, and only when she works overtime every month can she earn 8-9 million VND. She also changed companies several times because her salary was unstable but still not stable.

“During the most difficult times, the children were constantly sick, and the grandparents in the countryside could only take care of them for a few days before returning to take care of the farm, while the couple constantly had to work overtime. Therefore, the couple could not manage. They were not comfortable sending their children to school because the schools and classes were not guaranteed. Many worker families here also tried to send their children to school but were always worried because the schools were not guaranteed. As a last resort, I had to quit my job and stay home to sell goods to take care of my children,” Ms. Hoa shared.

Ms. Nguyen Thi Minh - a worker residing in Thach That district (Hanoi) from Son La is also in the same situation. Ms. Minh is a hard-working person, always working hard, so her income is much higher than working in agriculture in her hometown. Then, the real difficulties came after her child reached kindergarten age. Without the support of her grandparents, she managed to send her child from daycare to kindergarten. The child was sickly and cried a lot, so the kindergartens were not interested in taking care of him. From the first child to the second, the situation continued. She almost had to quit her job to take care of her child. When her child went to school, it was really difficult. The school that was qualified for her child was far away, and the parents worked shifts and it was inconvenient to pick her up and drop her off. The school that was suitable for her child was not able to be admitted because she did not have a household registration and the cost was beyond the couple's ability... After several months of hesitation, the couple finally decided to return to their hometown.

Ms. Pham Thi Thu Lan - Deputy Director of the Institute of Workers and Trade Unions said that sending children back to their hometown is the first choice of workers if their parents in the hometown have the conditions and time to take care of them. However, children living away from their parents for a long time also raises issues about the relationship between parents and children, as well as the parents' opportunities to educate, teach and love their children. Workers do not get to talk to or be close to their children every day, do not know how their children eat, play, study, or witness, care for, or teach their children in a timely manner. Therefore, sending their children to private facilities is the choice of many workers despite their low income, with 70% of workers nationwide belonging to the low-income group of less than 10 million VND and having to rent a house. However, they still have to "tighten their belts" to send their children to school.

According to Ms. Do Hong Van - Head of the Women's Committee, Vietnam General Confederation of Labor, in recent times, the Vietnam General Confederation of Labor has always paid attention, worried, and sought every solution to promote the implementation of nursery and kindergarten policies for workers' children, contributing to protecting the legitimate rights and interests of union members and workers. Specifically, the General Confederation has recommended that industrial parks that are formed and developed in the future have plans to allocate land funds to build nursery and kindergartens; supplement land funds to build nursery and kindergartens for established industrial parks. Directing trade unions at all levels to implement Directive 09 of the Prime Minister on promoting the implementation of solutions to solve the problem of preschools in industrial parks and export processing zones. In addition, speed up the construction and operation of trade union institutions in industrial parks and export processing zones, including kindergartens for workers' children. Directing trade unions at all levels to coordinate and mobilize businesses to build nurseries and kindergartens, and support childcare for workers' children, typically in Dong Nai, Binh Duong, Tien Giang provinces...

However, the lack of schools, forcing workers to find their own places to study for their children, is still happening. This requires the sectors, levels and localities to be more urgent and closely involved in building schools for industrial zones.

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The lack of schools forces workers to find ways to send their children to work, and most of them have to send their children to daycare centers, grandparents, or private schools. According to the survey on life, work, and annual income of the Institute of Workers and Trade Unions, 40% of workers have to send their children to their hometowns for relatives to look after, nearly 22% send them to family daycare centers or private kindergartens. Some leave their children with neighbors or acquaintances near the boarding house, and some have their spouses stay home to take care of their children or ask relatives from the countryside to come. Some workers even leave their children alone in the boarding house during their shift, although this is not often.

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