Job cuts, reduced hours hit nearly 510,000 Vietnamese workers

By Huong Dung
Tue, June 6, 2023 | 1:48 pm GMT+7

Over half a million employees in Vietnam lost their jobs or had their work hours cut in the first five months of this year, said Minister of Labor, Invalids and Social Affairs Dao Ngoc Dung on Monday.

Of the total, 280,000 people quit their jobs or were laid off, accounting for 54.79%, he told legislators during the ongoing session of the National Assembly.

They were mainly working in localities with large industrial parks and economic zones, such as Binh Duong, Dong Nai and Ho Chi Minh City in the south, and Bac Giang, Bac Ninh, Hai Duong and Hanoi in the north.

The textile and garment industry saw the largest numbers of workers laid off or having their hours cut, with 70,000 and 66,600, respectively. It was followed by leather and footwear, with 31,600 and 66,000; and manufacturing of electronic components and products, with 45,000 and 24,800.

Minister of Labor, Invalids and Social Affairs Dao Ngoc Dung speaks at the ongoing session of the legislature on June 5, 2023. Photo courtesy of Dan Tri (People's Knowledge) newspaper.

Minister of Labor, Invalids and Social Affairs Dao Ngoc Dung speaks at the ongoing session of the legislature on June 5, 2023. Photo courtesy of Dan Tri (People's Knowledge) newspaper.

The number of unpaid workers reached 17,000, with the textile and garment industry again taking the lead with nearly 5,000.

More than 8,600 businesses had to cut staff, of which 27% were foreign-invested enterprises while the rest were domestic private companies. The most affected region was the southeast, accounting for nearly two thirds of the total, while 12% of the enterprises were based in the Red River Delta region.

Untrained workers made up the largest proportion of job cuts at 68%.

Minister Dung attributed the cuts to a lack of orders, difficulties in foreign economies, high inflation, and tightened monetary policy that has resulted in declining purchasing power, especially for clothing, shoes and personal electronic devices.

Many businesses had reported huge inventories while there were no new orders, he added.

According to Dung, the Ministry of Labor, Invalids and Social Affairs has implemented policies to support workers who had lost their jobs or had their hours cut like free recruitment consultancy, vocational training support, preferential credit, and expanding beneficiaries of the National Employment Fund.

To assist laid-off workers, Dung said his ministry will consider amending the unemployment insurance policy and effectively support them to access preferential loans from the Vietnam Bank for Social Policies.

Earlier, Dang Xuan Phuong, deputy head of the National Assembly’s Committee for Culture, Education, Adolescents and Children, said that as the Vietnamese economy is forecast to continue facing difficulties, the government should ask businesses to limit production expansion and avoid mass layoffs.

"The government needs to guide enterprises to allow employees to work in rotation and limit sudden layoffs that negatively affect workers' lives," he said.

Comments (0)
  • Read More
Vietnam's benchmark VN-Index could surpass 2,000 points in 2026: exec

Vietnam's benchmark VN-Index could surpass 2,000 points in 2026: exec

VN-Index could top 2,000 points next year, said Huynh Minh Tuan, founder of FIDT - a Ho Chi Minh City-based investment consulting firm.

Finance - Thu, October 23, 2025 | 10:55 am GMT+7

Key factors helping firms export to demanding markets: DH Foods exec

Key factors helping firms export to demanding markets: DH Foods exec

Don’t treat business as a week-to-week or month-to-month affair. To go the distance, you must conduct business ethically, writes Nguyen Trung Dung, CEO of DH Foods.

Consulting - Thu, October 23, 2025 | 8:00 am GMT+7

Gold exchange, gold derivatives, gold ETFs proposed to be launched in Vietnam

Gold exchange, gold derivatives, gold ETFs proposed to be launched in Vietnam

Forming a gold exchange under state management in Vietnam is suitable to the reality, said Dao Xuan Tuan, head of the foreign exchange management department under the State Bank of Vietnam (SBV).

Finance - Wed, October 22, 2025 | 9:00 pm GMT+7

Real estate major Novaland wins key approval for $5 bln project in central Vietnam

Real estate major Novaland wins key approval for $5 bln project in central Vietnam

Novaland Group (HoSE: NVL), one of Vietnam’s leading property developers, has received investment approval for its flagship project worth $5 billion in the central province of Lam Dong after years of delay due to legal obstacles.

Real Estate - Wed, October 22, 2025 | 4:20 pm GMT+7

Vietnam's plastics heavyweights Tien Phong, Binh Minh report profit surges

Vietnam's plastics heavyweights Tien Phong, Binh Minh report profit surges

Tien Phong Plastic (HNX: NTP) recorded pre-tax profit of nearly VND949 billion ($36.04 million) in the first nine months of the year, exceeding its full-year target by 10.85%, while Binh Minh Plastic (HoSE: BMP) achieved record net profit of VND350 billion ($13.29 million) in Q3, surpassing its VND330 billion milestone set in the previous quarter.

Companies - Wed, October 22, 2025 | 4:17 pm GMT+7

Vietnam, Finland firms sign multiple MoUs on satellite, cybersecurity, aviation partnerships

Vietnam, Finland firms sign multiple MoUs on satellite, cybersecurity, aviation partnerships

A series of cooperation agreements were signed between Vietnam and Finland on Tuesday, within the framework of Party chief To Lam's official visit to Helsinki, while bilateral relationship was lifted to a "strategic partnership".

Economy - Wed, October 22, 2025 | 12:43 pm GMT+7

Trung Nam Ca Na seeks to convert agri-forest land for $147 mln industrial park in central Vietnam

Trung Nam Ca Na seeks to convert agri-forest land for $147 mln industrial park in central Vietnam

Industrial park developer Trung Nam Ca Na is seeking approval to convert about 170 hectares of agricultural and forest land for the construction of a VND3,875 billion ($147 million) project in Vietnam’s central coastal province of Khanh Hoa.

Industrial real estate - Wed, October 22, 2025 | 10:54 am GMT+7

PV Power's arm posts 5-fold jump in Q3 profit on margin recovery

PV Power's arm posts 5-fold jump in Q3 profit on margin recovery

PetroVietnam Power Nhon Trach 2 JSC (HoSE: NT2) reported a sharp rebound in third-quarter earnings as improved margins and higher revenue lifted profits nearly fivefold from a year earlier.

Companies - Wed, October 22, 2025 | 8:37 am GMT+7

TCBS overtakes SSI to become Vietnam’s largest securities company by market cap

TCBS overtakes SSI to become Vietnam’s largest securities company by market cap

Over 2.3 billion shares of Techcom Securities JSC (TCBS) debuted on the Ho Chi Minh City Stock Exchange (HoSE) on Tuesday. The stock, TCX, recorded the highest price and the largest market capitalization in the Vietnamese securities sector.

Finance - Tue, October 21, 2025 | 10:27 pm GMT+7

Indonesia’s palm oil industry becomes investment magnet

Indonesia’s palm oil industry becomes investment magnet

Indonesia’s palm oil sector attracted IDR52.7 trillion, or approximately $3.2 billion, in investment during the first nine months of this year, with the money going into enabling the country to capture more value out of its top commodity, the country’s Ministry of Investment reported.

Southeast Asia - Tue, October 21, 2025 | 9:34 pm GMT+7

Indonesia reports strong job, investment growth

Indonesia reports strong job, investment growth

The Indonesian Coordinating Ministry for Economic Affairs reported strong job and investment growth during the first year of President Prabowo Subianto’s administration, compared with the first year under his predecessor.

Southeast Asia - Tue, October 21, 2025 | 9:29 pm GMT+7

Singapore grants conditional approval for 1GW low-carbon power import from Malaysia

Singapore grants conditional approval for 1GW low-carbon power import from Malaysia

Singapore has granted conditional approval to import 1 GW of low-carbon electricity from the Malaysian state of Sarawak, marking a new phase in the energy partnership between the two countries.

Southeast Asia - Tue, October 21, 2025 | 9:26 pm GMT+7

Margin lending in Vietnam’s stock market hits record, but not worrisome

Margin lending in Vietnam’s stock market hits record, but not worrisome

Despite margin debt in Vietnam’s stock market surging sharply, experts believe that current margin pressure is not yet a major concern as top securities firms have significantly strengthened their capital buffers.

Finance - Tue, October 21, 2025 | 4:23 pm GMT+7

Lenders in Vietnam now in low-rate lending race: ACB exec

Lenders in Vietnam now in low-rate lending race: ACB exec

The biggest “headache” for banks in Vietnam now is that profit margins are getting thinner, said CEO of Asia Commercial Bank (ACB) Tu Tien Phat.

Banking & Finance - Tue, October 21, 2025 | 4:00 pm GMT+7

PV Gas - 35 years of innovation and technological leadership in Vietnam’s gas industry

PV Gas - 35 years of innovation and technological leadership in Vietnam’s gas industry

Over the past 35 years of establishment and development (1990-2025), PV Gas, a subsidiary of state-owned giant Petrovietnam, has affirmed its pioneering position in Vietnam’s gas industry, marked by a series of groundbreaking achievements in science and technology.

Companies - Tue, October 21, 2025 | 3:45 pm GMT+7

Vietnam's consumer finance major F88 achieves 90% of year's profit target after 9 months

Vietnam's consumer finance major F88 achieves 90% of year's profit target after 9 months

F88 Investment JSC (F88), a leading consumer finance company in Vietnam, reported a cumulative pre-tax profit of VND603 billion ($22.88 million) in the first nine months of 2025, a 2.5-fold increase year-on-year, reaching 90% of its full-year target of VND673 billion.

Companies - Tue, October 21, 2025 | 3:15 pm GMT+7