Abundant supply, businesses still "thirsty" for labor

With more than 1.2 million workers, of which nearly 40% are young people, Dak Lak province is considered a locality with advantages in human resources.

However, while many businesses are "thirsty" for labor, many young people choose seasonal jobs, causing the gap between labor supply and demand to remain.

In the first 10 months of 2025, the Provincial Employment Service Center (Department of Home Affairs) collected recruitment information from 2,275 enterprises, with a total recruitment demand of 33,107 positions, of which unskilled workers accounted for 94%. However, only 8,815 people registered to find jobs (reaching a rate of 26.6%). This shows that the labor supply has not met market requirements, especially in the unskilled labor group.

Mr. Le Hai Ly, Director of the Provincial Employment Service Center, said that of the total number of enterprises registering for recruitment, enterprises in the province account for 93%, the rest are enterprises outside the province. Although the number of enterprises outside the province is 12 times less, the recruitment demand is almost equal to that of enterprises in the province (16,200/16,907 positions). This reflects the "thirst" for unskilled labor in industrial parks and export processing zones in large provinces and cities such as Dong Nai, Ho Chi Minh City ..., especially in the fields of food processing, processing, and component manufacturing.

Cu Pong commune workers participate in the 2025 Job Fair.

Meanwhile, most of the enterprises recruiting labor in Dak Lak province are small and medium-sized enterprises, operating in a scattered manner, with small recruitment scale, so it is difficult to attract workers. On the other hand, most of the local laborers living in rural areas, ethnic minority areas are familiar with agricultural production. Many workers tend to choose freelance, seasonal jobs, fast income, few obligations instead of long-term commitment in the business environment.

Mr. Y Phun Nie (in Cu Pong commune) used to work as a worker in Binh Duong Industrial Park (Ho Chi Minh City) for more than 4 years. During Tet 2025, he quit his job and returned to his hometown to work for hire. He said that working as a worker outside the province has a stable salary but requires additional expenses for food, accommodation, transportation... As for picking coffee or taking care of durian, the salary is about 200,000 - 400,000 VND/day, close to home, and he can take the initiative in his time to help his family. However, he also admitted that his current job is only seasonal and his income is unstable.

“Dak Lak province has a great advantage in young human resources, but if there is no policy to attract and retain them, this force will continue to shift. To have a balanced and sustainable job market, we must help workers see long-term development opportunities” - Director of the Provincial Employment Service Center Le Hai Ly.

Faced with this situation, the Provincial Employment Service Center has increased connections, consultations, and support for workers. Since the beginning of 2025, the Center has organized 21 transaction sessions, 36 consultations, and 2 large-scale job fairs, reaching more than 46,000 workers directly and through online channels such as Facebook, Zalo, TikTok, etc. Thereby creating opportunities for many workers to have stable jobs.

Ms. Nguyen Thi Toan (Ea Sup commune) used to be afraid of going far away, but after attending a job fair held locally in September 2025, she was accepted to work at an agricultural import-export service company in Buon Ho ward. “At first, I was very worried, but now I'm used to it. The company pays me 7 million VND per month, with insurance, so I feel much more secure than working freelance,” Ms. Toan shared.

In many localities in the province, connecting workers with businesses to create jobs is identified as a key step in poverty reduction.

For example, Cu Pong commune has more than 17,400 people, of which ethnic minorities account for 67% of the population. In the period of 2025 - 2030, the People's Committee of the commune aims to create new jobs for 3,500 workers. Mr. Nguyen The Anh, Chairman of the People's Committee of the commune, said that the poverty rate of the commune is 17%. People are still used to seasonal work, so the locality focuses on propaganda, training links, loan support; strengthens coordination with the Provincial Employment Service Center to organize job fairs and job transactions in the commune to help people easily access businesses, opening up stable employment opportunities.

Dak Lak Provincial Employment Service Center opens a vocational training class on neck and shoulder treatment for workers receiving unemployment benefits. Photo: Nguyen Tham

In Hoa Hiep ward, according to the 2025 review results, the ward has 21,015 people of working age (accounting for 47.6% of the population). This is an abundant human resource, but according to the assessment of the local government, 45.07% of the labor force still works in the agricultural sector. Meanwhile, the rate of trained labor is 45.26% but only 35.57% have diplomas and certificates. The majority of workers work based on experience and have not received vocational training.

Mr. Duong Van Dong, Vice Chairman of the Ward People's Committee, informed that the locality is reviewing and grouping workers to connect with businesses inside and outside the area to create opportunities for workers to participate in the labor market; at the same time, promoting short-term vocational training and encouraging workers to learn about the labor export market to increase income. Thanks to synchronous solutions, the job creation work in Hoa Hiep Ward has had positive changes. Up to now, 1,000 workers have been created jobs in 2025, of which 810 people have been created in the first 9 months of the year, and it is expected that the ward will complete 100% of the set plan.

In reality, although many localities have proactively implemented business connections, opened vocational training classes, and created on-site jobs for people, to reduce the "phase difference" between labor and employment, it is necessary to provide vocational training according to actual needs and have appropriate remuneration policies to retain workers in enterprises.

Source: https://baodaklak.vn/kinh-te/202511/nguon-cung-doi-dao-doanh-nghiep-van-khat-lao-dong-71000f3/