FDI shaping Vietnam’s labor market in 2026: expert

Foreign direct investment (FDI) is increasingly reshaping Vietnam’s labor market in 2026, driving strong demand for skilled workers in sectors such as technology, manufacturing and automation, said Ngo Thi Ngoc Lan, a regional director at Navigos Search.

What challenges are businesses facing in recruiting workers after the Lunar New Year holiday (Tet)?

Typically, the period after Tet is when recruitment activities become very active. Part of the reason is that many companies begin implementing hiring plans prepared at the end of the previous year. At the same time, this is also when businesses need to replace employees who leave their jobs after receiving Tet bonuses. As a result, the surge in hiring demand increases competition for qualified candidates, which is the first major challenge for businesses.

Second, many companies struggle to find candidates who fully meet requirements in terms of experience and capability, particularly in sectors facing shortages of high-quality talent. The third challenge relates to salary costs. When changing jobs, most candidates expect higher pay than their current positions. This forces companies to expand salary budgets to recruit new employees or replace departing staff.

Is there a shortage of highly-skilled technical workers in high-tech industries, and is this shortage more severe than that of unskilled labor?

Companies are increasingly prioritizing the recruitment of highly skilled technical workers, especially in technology sectors. For example, one of our clients, a U.S. company, plans to double or even triple its recruitment scale. Most of its recruitment demand focuses on technical workers rather than unskilled labor.

However, attracting candidates with the right specialization is difficult because Vietnam currently lacks training programs tailored to these fields. In such cases, foreign companies have to adjust their recruitment strategies by hiring candidates with basic foundational skills and then placing them in internal training programs, sometimes even sending them abroad for training.

This shows that businesses are increasingly focusing on skilled technical personnel instead of relying mainly on unskilled labor as in the past.

Some say companies are prioritizing automation-related jobs rather than manual labor. What is your view on this?

In my view, a company’s hiring priorities depend on two main factors.

First is macro-level direction and government policy, including requirements for companies investing in Vietnam to incorporate higher levels of technology into production instead of relying on labor-intensive industries.

Second is the company’s own transformation strategy. In recent years, Vietnam has prioritized attracting foreign investment into high-tech manufacturing while limiting labor-intensive industries, particularly those that may harm the environment. As a result, companies investing in Vietnam increasingly seek workers with technical expertise and the ability to operate machinery.

However, some long-established businesses in labor-intensive industries still maintain strong demand for unskilled workers. Nevertheless, it is undeniable that more companies are accelerating automation in production to reduce labor costs and improve productivity. Therefore, demand for engineering positions related to automation has risen significantly in recent years.

What do you think about the view that workers now prioritize stability over salary after the pandemic?

In a survey conducted by Navigos with a large number of candidates at the end of 2025 and published in early 2026 on job-switching trends, the results showed that 42% of candidates were actively seeking new jobs. Meanwhile, 28.6% said they were not actively looking but would consider applying if suitable opportunities arose.

Only a small percentage said they had no intention of changing jobs within the next year or were satisfied with their current positions.

This means more than 70% of surveyed workers expressed interest in changing jobs. When making such decisions, salary remains the most important factor.

However, a notable point is that job stability and security rank among the top four factors workers consider when choosing a new position. This indicates that employees are increasingly concerned about the safety and long-term sustainability of the companies they work for. If a company lacks long-term development prospects, workers are less likely to choose it.

Is the trend of waiting for Tet bonuses before quitting still common?

Every year, the labor market becomes more active after the Lunar New Year holiday, and this year is no exception. Based on our observations, just a few days after the holiday, the number of candidates seeking new opportunities or actively applying for jobs increased significantly compared with the period before Tet.

However, in recent years, job changes have no longer been concentrated solely after Tet. Workers now make career changes at various times throughout the year.

Even so, the period after Tet remains the most dynamic, as many companies also launch recruitment plans to achieve their business targets for the new year.

Which industries will have the strongest hiring prospects in 2026, in your opinion?

According to Navigos’s latest survey on labor demand by industry, positions related to business development and sales rank first in recruitment demand. This is understandable because every company needs to bring products and services to market to drive growth.

The second group with high demand includes manufacturing and semiconductors, reflecting the trend of FDI inflows into Vietnam. If investment growth continues as forecast, about 50-60% of FDI capital will continue to concentrate in the processing and manufacturing sector.

In addition, positions related to IT and data remain in high demand thanks to digital transformation trends. However, recruitment requirements for these fields are becoming more stringent, not only in terms of quantity but also in the quality of talent.

Furthermore, as the government accelerates public investment and infrastructure development, construction-related sectors are also expected to see strong labor demand in the coming period.

What is the biggest risk for Vietnam’s labor market in 2026?

For many years, the key pillars of Vietnam’s economy have depended heavily on FDI inflows and export activities.

In 2025, newly registered FDI reached about $38.4 billion, among the highest levels in many years. Vietnam’s total import-export turnover also hit about $930 billion, showing the economy’s strong dependence on international trade.

Therefore, if the global economy experiences volatility or recession, leading to declining overseas demand for goods or reduced FDI inflows into Vietnam, the domestic labor market will be significantly affected.

In addition, there are long-term risks such as workers’ skills not keeping pace with the economy’s development needs. Vietnam is also entering a period of population aging. By 2030, the country is expected to have around 18 million people aged over 60, and within the next decade about 20% of Vietnam’s population will be over 60.

This could create significant challenges for the labor market, including shortages of young workers, rising social costs and increased pressure on pension funds.

According to a report by the Vietnam General Confederation of Labor (VGCL), shortly after the Lunar New Year holiday 2026, most companies recorded employee return-to-work rates of between 96% and 99%, indicating that the labor market quickly stabilized after the long break.

In some localities, the rate was particularly high. Vinh Long led with 99.2%, followed by Thai Nguyen and Thanh Hoa at 98%. Provinces such as Cao Bang, Ha Tinh, Hue, Lang Son, Son La and Phu Tho recorded 97%, while Hanoi, Hai Phong and Can Tho saw around 96%, and Quang Tri reported 95%. Ho Chi Minh City is expected to reach a 100% return-to-work rate by early March.

According to the VGCL, compared with previous years, the number of workers returning to work on time or earlier than scheduled has increased. This reflects a stable sentiment among employees as well as confidence in the positive production and business outlook of companies in the new year.