"December 2023, that's the last month of the year. It's hard to believe I've already experienced four winters in Japan. I wonder how things are at home with my parents, because it's been four years since I last went home for Tet (Vietnamese New Year)...", said Vu, a worker in Japan, his voice choked with emotion.
Many workers in Japan are still hesitant about returning home for the Lunar New Year amidst the depreciating yen and rising living costs (Illustrative photo: Nguyen Vy).
It's Tet (Vietnamese New Year), but I can't feel happy.
I remember two years ago, as the New Year's Eve approached, the mother of Dang Van Vu (25 years old, from Gia Lai ) called urgently: "Are you coming home for Tet this year, son?"
As Vũ replied to his mother, tears welled up in his eyes as he said, "I probably won't be able to come home, Mom, I'm too busy this year." At that time, Vũ was struggling to suppress the pain from a work accident a week before the 2021 Lunar New Year.
He suffered a broken nose and injuries to his right thigh when concrete fell on him. With his face covered in bandages, he could only cover the camera while celebrating New Year's Eve via video call with his family.
"It was a sad Lunar New Year. Every time my parents asked if I was coming home, I would hesitate and make up all sorts of excuses. The truth is, trips like that are very expensive, and I want to save money to take care of my parents instead," Vu confided.
Mr. Vu came to Japan to work four years ago. Due to the busy and strenuous work, reduced income, and rising living costs, Mr. Vu had no choice but to leave his hometown.
Previously, Mr. Vu worked as a construction machinery operator. In his fourth year working in Japan, he switched to working as an automotive maintenance technician with a salary of 170,000 yen per month (approximately 27.7 million VND), plus bonuses twice a year.
According to Mr. Vu, two years ago, the Japanese yen was still worth over 204 dong/yen, but now it's only around 165 dong/yen. Therefore, the amount of money he sends home to his family has decreased from 25 million dong to 17 million dong per month. However, to be able to send 17 million dong to his mother, he has to live as frugally as possible.
Moreover, the rising cost of living, especially food, has made life even more difficult for Vietnamese workers in Japan like Mr. Vu. With expenses reaching 50,000 yen per month (equivalent to 8.1 million VND), the amount of money Mr. Vu saves to send back home is now dwindling.
With less money being sent home to their families, many workers choose to celebrate Tet away from home to save on expenses (Illustrative photo: Son Nguyen).
Like Mr. Vu, Mr. Nguyen Gia Quan (27 years old, from Hanoi ) has been living and working in Japan for over 5 years. As an engineer, Mr. Quan said that although his income is quite high compared to the average, he still struggles to send money back home due to the depreciating yen. For those who go to Japan as trainees, according to Mr. Quan, the challenges are even greater.
"My income has decreased by more than 10 million VND, from over 30 million VND to 20 million VND per month. Exchange rate fluctuations haven't affected the Japanese too much, but it's a huge headache for us Vietnamese workers. Companies have started laying off employees or at least cutting working hours, and workers aren't allowed to work overtime like before," said Mr. Quan.
No amount of money can compare to... Tet in the countryside.
Recalling his early days in Japan, Mr. Vu once dreamed of changing his life and paying off his family's debts. At that time, he lived in Niigata Prefecture, one of the snowiest places in Japan. There, the summers were extremely hot, and the winters were bitterly cold. Mr. Vu's skin, which was once rosy, turned dark due to the hard work.
In Japan, he learned many things, from knowledge and skills to the professional conduct of the Japanese people. He is also secretly grateful to the country for giving him the opportunity to earn money.
However, despite leaving his hometown with so much determination and hope for a better life, all he wants now is to save enough capital to return and live a more peaceful life. More than anything, he also longs for the familiar atmosphere of Tet (Vietnamese New Year) in his hometown, which he has missed for so long.
Despite learning many things and having opportunities to earn money, many Vietnamese workers in Japan still long for the day they save enough money to return home (Illustrative image: EPA caregiver program).
Seeing his parents' hair turning gray, he became even more aware of his limited time. Despite the current difficulties of life abroad, Vu is determined to arrange to return home this Tet holiday to celebrate New Year's Eve with his family.
Besides Mr. Vu, many other Vietnamese workers in Japan are still undecided about whether to return home or stay during Tet this year. For example, Truc (23 years old, from An Giang province) came to Japan to work at the age of 21, dropping out of university to work and earn money.
The 23-year-old girl fears she will have to celebrate Tet (Lunar New Year) away from home this year because she is still not financially secure, given the depreciating yen and high cost of living. In some months, the money Truc sends home to her family, which was already small, becomes even more difficult to manage. This has left her quite disappointed compared to her initial hopes, as the current value of the yen is low compared to the amount of hard work she has to do.
As Truc (in black shirt) once celebrated Tet (Vietnamese Lunar New Year) away from home with fellow Vietnamese in Japan (Photo: Provided by the interviewee).
Every day, Truc starts work at 6 PM and finishes at 9 AM the next morning. She works as an employee at a food company, specializing in cooking and preparing boxed meals, earning 22-25 million VND per month. This amount includes overtime pay, as Truc needs to work overtime to cover her living expenses and send money home to her family as planned.
In recent years, the number of Vietnamese workers going to Japan has accounted for over 50% of the total number of Vietnamese workers going abroad annually. As of December 2022, the total number of Vietnamese workers currently living and working in Japan is 345,000.
Among the 15 countries that send trainees to Japan, Vietnam ranks first both in the number of trainees entering the country annually and the number of trainees currently undergoing training there.
Currently, there are over 200,000 Vietnamese trainees undergoing training in Japan (accounting for more than 50% of the total number of foreign trainees in Japan).
Source link
Comment (0)