Solving the problem of unemployment

50% OF UNEMPLOYED PEOPLE ARE UNDER 35 YEARS OLD

Ms. Nguyen Van Hanh Thuc, Director of the Ho Chi Minh City Employment Service Center (abbreviated as the center) under the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Home Affairs, said that in April 2025, the center received 12,376 applications for unemployment benefits, an increase of 1,740 applications (an increase of 16.36%) compared to March 2025 (10,636 applications). Accumulated from January 1, 2025 to April 30, 2025, the center received 35,966 applications, a decrease of 5,490 applications compared to the same period in 2024 (41,456 applications). Also during this period, Ho Chi Minh City issued 33,792 decisions on unemployment benefits for employees and received 168,233 employees reporting their employment status every month.

Officers receive, process, advise and check unemployment benefit documents of workers. PHOTO: PTN

From the beginning of the year to mid-May 2025, the center received more than 43,000 applications. Notably, nearly 50% of the unemployed were young workers under 35 years old. At the same time, 43% of unemployed workers did not have a degree and 37% had a university degree or higher. In addition, the center has supported vocational training for nearly 800 workers receiving unemployment benefits. However, this number is still modest compared to the total number of people registering for benefits.

On May 22, Thanh Nien reporters at the Unemployment Insurance Department of the Ho Chi Minh City Employment Service Center (Binh Thanh District) noted that the number of workers who came to submit their applications and complete procedures to receive unemployment benefits were mainly middle-aged and young people. The main reasons why workers quit their jobs and want to receive unemployment benefits were because they changed their working environment, wanted time off to take care of themselves and their families, their businesses cut staff, and could not stand the pressure of their current work at the business.

Many workers applying for unemployment benefits are young people. PHOTO: PTN

Ms. NTĐ (42 years old, in Binh Thanh District) has just terminated her labor contract with a company specializing in distributing pharmaceuticals and cosmetics. Ms. D. said: "My mother is also old and weak and I want to take some time off to take care of her. In addition, I see that the company is also cutting down on employees, many older people are leaving, so I decided to quit, leaving the next generation to replace me. I registered for benefits first, to see how many months I can receive them before thinking about finding a job."

Meanwhile, Ms. NNKV (in Ho Chi Minh City) has just graduated. Due to her difficult family situation, she started working early and found a sales job. Ms. V. shared: "I find the workload too much. The company's recruitment is also difficult, I keep seeing job postings. There are days when I just stand alone selling products and it's too much. Maybe I'm still young and haven't adapted or been able to withstand the pressure of the current labor market."

Fluctuations due to labor migration

According to Ms. Nguyen Van Hanh Thuc, data compared to the same period in 2024 shows that the unemployment rate is on a downward trend. However, the labor market picture is still volatile.

Workers apply for unemployment benefits at the Ho Chi Minh City Employment Service Center. PHOTO: PTN

The digital transformation and restructuring of enterprises after the Covid-19 pandemic has created a wave of staff cuts, focusing on positions that are no longer suitable for the new operating model. This not only affects middle-aged workers, who often have difficulty adapting to new technology, but also affects young workers because they are under pressure to perform and the rapid changes in the market.

According to Ms. Thuc, young workers account for a significant proportion of the total unemployed in Ho Chi Minh City. The reasons come from many sides, such as the trend of "job hopping" to find a more suitable environment, too much work pressure and a lack of clear career development opportunities. Meanwhile, Ho Chi Minh City is home to many of the country's leading universities, which also leads to competition in the job market, especially when students graduate.

Many new graduates lack soft skills, experience, real-life work pressure, and the ability to adapt to modern business requirements, so they struggle to find stable jobs at first. Although middle-aged workers have experience, they face obstacles due to age prejudice and rapid changes in skills in the digitalized work environment.

On the other hand, many provinces and cities outside Ho Chi Minh City are currently promoting the attraction of workers through the development of industrial parks and economic zones with increasingly abundant job opportunities. Therefore, many workers choose to return to their hometowns instead of continuing to stay in urban areas.

This wave of labor migration has caused many fluctuations in personnel, especially in labor-intensive industries such as textiles, footwear, wholesale and retail. The shortage of human resources has forced many businesses to continuously recruit large numbers or require employees to work overtime to ensure production and business progress.

In fact, under pressure to maintain a stable workforce, many businesses in Ho Chi Minh City have been forced to adjust their compensation policies. Basic salaries have been raised, benefits have been improved, and some places have even provided additional support for accommodation, travel expenses, or performance-based bonuses to retain employees. In addition, many businesses have also proactively implemented internal training programs and career orientation to increase employee commitment to the organization.

Regarding the center, Ms. Hanh Thuc said that the unit is implementing many solutions to improve the efficiency of connecting labor supply and demand. The focus is on standardizing official information channels and perfecting job connection software, thereby supporting workers to access suitable job opportunities more quickly and conveniently. At the same time, the center will increase the organization of job fairs, creating conditions for businesses and workers to meet directly, recruit, and improve the platforms in form and content to reach more young people.

According to Anphabe's report on human resource market trends in early 2025, the Vietnamese labor market in general is in the process of restructuring enterprises. According to Anphabe's survey, 28% of enterprises have streamlined their organizations on a large scale by the end of 2024, and about 10% of other enterprises are expected to continue this trend in 2025. The streamlining wave is spreading from retail, fast-moving consumer goods, tourism to finance and manufacturing.
However, Anphabe warns about the long-term consequences of restructuring and optimizing resources without a strategy, such as difficulty attracting talent, the group after streamlining is more stressed, talented people leave... Therefore, businesses need to clearly define goals and directions to retain the most suitable personnel, ready to accompany and share a long-term vision.

Source TNO

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