More effective vocational training support

Most unemployed people want to receive benefits and are less interested in vocational training, so the support policy has not yet received a large response from workers.

Unemployed at the age of 38, Mr. Pham Huu Hy - residing in Tan Tao ward, Ho Chi Minh City - went to the Employment Service Center to register for unemployment benefits.

Indifferent to learning a trade

Mr. Hy was advised by the Employment Service Center to take a vocational course in electrical and refrigeration repair with a tuition support of about 70%. However, thinking that "learning a trade takes several months while the family needs money for daily expenses", he chose to receive TCTN to cover immediate expenses and look for seasonal work.

The culinary techniques classes of the Asia - Europe Vocational Training Center attract quite a lot of workers because they meet the right needs.

Mr. Hy's case is not unique, reflecting the reality that many unemployed workers are interested in receiving unemployment benefits immediately, and do not want to invest time in vocational training to stabilize their lives in the long term.

According to the Ministry of Home Affairs , in the first 6 months of 2025, the whole country had 345,175 cases of unemployment benefits, but only 8,740 people participated in vocational training. This modest rate of about 2.5% shows that workers are not interested in vocational training after losing their jobs.

Statistics from the Department of Employment - Ministry of Home Affairs show that the rate of unemployed people participating in vocational training is very low, hovering around 7% for many years. This shows that the vocational training support policy has not received much attention from the unemployed.

Many opinions say that the primary reason is that vocational training programs are not close to recruitment needs. Many occupations are included in training, but after completing their studies, workers have difficulty finding suitable jobs, leading to a reluctance to participate.

On the other hand, the current support level of 1.5 million/month/person is considered not attractive enough for workers to boldly pursue vocational training. Career counseling and connection with enterprises are also inadequate. Many employment service centers mainly inform about benefits, without in-depth career orientation or close links with enterprises to ensure output for students.

Meanwhile, many unemployed people still want to receive immediate benefits, instead of investing time in vocational training for long-term development. Age and family circumstances also make many people afraid to relearn a trade from the beginning.

Innovation in approach and approach

Many labor experts see vocational training support for the unemployed as an important step forward in the social security system. For this policy to be effective, both the approach and implementation mechanism need to be innovated.

Dr. Nguyen Thi Lan Huong, former Director of the Institute of Labor Science and Social Affairs, emphasized the implementation method. According to her, if we only stop at a general level of support and let workers fend for themselves, it will be very difficult to succeed. The State, enterprises and vocational training institutions need to participate in designing training packages closely linked to recruitment needs.

In the context of a rapidly changing labor market, many jobs are gradually disappearing and new jobs are emerging, creating vocational training opportunities for the unemployed not only helps them find jobs but also contributes to social stability.

Therefore, it is necessary to strongly innovate some related stages. Specifically, increase the level of vocational training support closer to actual costs; diversify training forms and professions, especially in digital skills, foreign languages, and soft skills. In addition, it is necessary to design short, flexible vocational courses that can be studied online; promote consultation and communication so that workers clearly understand the opportunities after training...

"Social security policies are only meaningful when they are supported by the people. Unfortunately, for many years, the number of unemployed people participating in vocational training has remained very low. If the implementation method is not changed soon, the vocational training support policy will continue to be ineffective, while workers are still struggling to find jobs and businesses still lack highly skilled human resources," Ms. Huong worried.

Need to ensure output

Many vocational training experts believe that the mindset of "training for training's sake" needs to change. Mr. Nguyen Khanh Cuong, Principal of LILAMA 2 International Technology College, commented that if the training program does not guarantee output, the vocational training support policy will hardly be attractive.

According to Mr. Cuong, it is time for the authorities, vocational training institutions and enterprises to take more drastic action, turning vocational training support policies into a door to open up job opportunities, helping the unemployed confidently overcome difficulties. That is also the foundation for ensuring sustainable social security, stabilizing the labor market and promoting socio-economic development.

"Enterprises need to participate in this vocational training game. When enterprises place training orders and commit to recruiting after the course, workers will clearly see the benefits and boldly participate," Mr. Cuong acknowledged.

Not attractive enough

At the Ho Chi Minh City Employment Service Center, in the first 6 months of 2025, only about 1,000 out of more than 51,000 unemployed people receiving unemployment benefits registered to study vocational training to improve their qualifications.

According to the HCM City Employment Service Center, many workers are not interested in vocational training because there are few participating training facilities. The procedures for settling financial expenses are complicated, so many vocational schools are not actively participating. In addition, the policy only supports tuition fees, not travel and accommodation expenses, so it is not attractive enough for workers.

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Source: https://baolaocai.vn/ho-tro-hoc-nghe-hieu-qua-hon-post879941.html