Untangling the labor bottleneck for breakthroughs - Part 2: The difficulty in retaining workers from outside the city.

Hai Phong is facing a significant shortage of skilled workers in several sectors, including logistics, information technology, and electrical engineering. (Pictured: Workers at 4P Electronics Joint Stock Company (Trang Due Industrial Park)).

The number of trained workers is still low.

In 2024, the former Hai Phong city had a population of 2.124 million people, of which over 1 million were of working age (accounting for 48.5%). The former Hai Duong province had a population of approximately 2.15 million people, of which about 1 million were in the workforce.

Following the merger, Hai Phong city is currently experiencing a "golden age" in terms of labor resources, with approximately over 2 million people. Despite this abundant workforce, shortages persist, especially for highly skilled workers, particularly in fields such as logistics, information technology, science and technology, and electrical engineering.

Mr. Nguyen Van Quyet, Permanent Vice Chairman of the City's Labor Union, stated that the main cause stems from an imbalance between labor supply and demand. Businesses currently need skilled workers with professional work ethics. Meanwhile, a segment of the local workforce lacks appropriate training, professional skills, work discipline, and adaptability to modern technology. A portion of the workforce in the area still lacks stable employment, mainly consisting of freelance workers, seasonal workers, or those transitioning from agriculture.

Although the overall quality of the workforce in Hai Phong city has improved over the years, by the second quarter of 2025, the percentage of trained workers with certificates of at least 3 months reached 39.45%. However, this figure is still lower than that of other provinces and cities in the region such as Quang Ninh (48%) and Hanoi (52%).

Many workers, despite having qualifications, lack practical experience, teamwork skills, and foreign language proficiency. Their work attitudes do not meet the requirements of integration, especially as Hai Phong is welcoming many large domestic and foreign businesses to operate there.

There is also a situation where many young workers in Hai Phong "dislike" working as factory workers. Ms. Tran Thi Thanh, a human resources recruitment officer at Jasan Vietnam Co., Ltd., VSIP Industrial Park, said that the company currently has more than 3,000 workers operating in the high-end sock manufacturing sector. 50% of the company's workers are local, while the rest are from other provinces. In recent years, the number of local workers has been decreasing.

"Many young people choose to work in service industries, small businesses, or as freelancers instead of factories because they dislike the rigid working hours. The income is stable but not truly attractive, so it hasn't attracted young workers yet," Ms. Thanh said.

Another concerning issue is the growing number of "self-employed" workers, meaning those who are not actively seeking employment, primarily those over 35 years old. Despite facing difficulties finding jobs, this group remains outside the factory and enterprise system within industrial and economic zones.

The job fair held on the morning of October 20th, organized by the City Employment Service Center, attracted a large number of job seekers, mostly those over 35 years old. However, not many were genuinely seeking employment; most were there to process unemployment benefits.

Mr. Pham Thanh Binh (40 years old) from Hung Dao ward said that he has a bachelor's degree in accounting but did not pursue a career in accounting, instead working as a sales representative for bathroom and kitchen equipment. In three years, he "job-hopped" through four companies with a salary of about 8 million VND/month and has been unemployed for more than half a year. "I didn't apply for factory work in industrial zones because I have a good education, and I can't bring myself to work as a factory worker now," Mr. Binh said.

Ms. Nguyen Thi Thanh, Head of the Job Counseling, Placement and Vocational Training Department at the City Employment Service Center, said that many businesses have extended the recruitment age to 45-55 for women, but supply and demand still don't match because workers prefer administrative jobs and don't want to work shifts. More than 90% of the positions are for unskilled labor, so many people with qualifications consider themselves "unsuitable".

Relying on external labor sources.

Part 8 — Despite being a "lifeline" for businesses and maintaining the operation of many production lines, workers from other localities are a group that frequently fluctuates. In the photo: Businesses participate in a job fair to recruit workers.

Currently, 66.7% of the workforce in Hai Phong's industrial parks and economic zones are local residents, with the remainder coming from other provinces and cities.

Although they are the workforce that helps businesses maintain many production lines, workers from other localities are a group that experiences frequent turnover.

The main reasons are that most migrant workers have to rent accommodation, face high living costs, and lack cultural and spiritual opportunities, leading to a "come and go" mentality. Many only work for 3-6 months before moving to another company, province, or city with better income, or returning to their hometowns to find work closer to home.

Having worked for many years in the Dai An Industrial Park, Ms. Tong Thi Huyen from Son La province, currently a worker at Chemilens Vietnam JSC, said that nearly a decade of working there has meant that she has been away from her family, husband, and children. She only gets to go home 2-3 times a year. "Soon, I will also return to my hometown to find a job closer to my family because here I have to rent a place, and life is unstable," Ms. Huyen said.

Regularly recruiting workers from Ha Giang and other Northwestern provinces to compensate for labor shortages, Ms. Pham Thi Minh Hai, Deputy Head of Human Resources at Regina Miracle International Co., Ltd., stated that in 2016 and 2017, many workers from Hung Yen, Ninh Binh, and Quang Ninh provinces came to Hai Phong to work. Currently, this source of labor has almost disappeared due to the high demand from those provinces. The company has to seek recruitment from provinces such as Dien Bien, Ha Giang, and Son La. However, even these workers are not easily swayed by the long distance to Hai Phong. Meanwhile, other provinces like Bac Ninh and Ninh Binh also offer attractive labor incentives.

"Retaining and attracting workers cannot rely solely on salary. They need a stable living environment, affordable housing, schools for their children near their workplaces, and guaranteed access to basic healthcare, cultural, and recreational services. To attract a workforce, the city needs to pay more attention to these issues," Ms. Hai said.

Sharing this view, Ms. Ha Thi Hong Nhung, Chairwoman of the Trade Union of Horn Vietnam Co., Ltd. (An Duong Ward), stated that 70% of the company's employees are from other localities such as Nghe An, Thanh Hoa, Quang Ninh, and the northern mountainous provinces. In recent years, many have returned to their hometowns or moved to other localities with better policies to work. To retain employees from other localities, the company maintains many policies such as providing a monthly allowance of 500,000 VND for phone and transportation costs, along with many other welfare policies…

The number of trained workers is still low.

Relying on external labor sources.

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