Unemployment Increases

Mr Nguyen Bich Lam, Deputy Director of the GSO said that the report announced major results of Labour and Employment Survey in the first three quarters of 2012, in order to provide information for employers. The GSO hopes the report will meet the requirements of researchers and policy-makers, especially those whose work is related to labour and employment. Moreover, major criteria in the report are calculated for people above 15 years old. Because Vietnam uses the criteria for people of working age (men aged from 15 to 59 and women from 15 to 54), the results for this age group are calculated for several criteria on unemployment and underemployment.

 

Also according to the report, to 1^st October 2012, Vietnam had 53.1 million people aged above 15 of which 52.1 million people have jobs. Almost 70 percent of labour force belongs to rural areas, but there are up to 984,000 unemployed people, accounting for 2.01 percent, and 1,369,000 underemployed people, accounting for 2.74 percent, because the economy did not create enough jobs for those just entering the labour force and some already unemployed. In addition, the unemployment rate in urban areas reached 3.3 percent in the first 9 months, higher than in rural areas (1.42 percent); unemployment among women is 2.36 percent, higher than men (1.71 percent). Ho Chi Minh City has the highest unemployment rate in 2012 with 3.92 percent. Following it is the Mekong Delta River, the North Central areas and Central Coast with 2.21 percent. This rate of Hanoi is 2.15 percent. The lowest rate belongs to Northern midland and mountainous areas with 0.77 percent. Meanwhile, the Mekong River Delta had the highest underemployment rate with 4.6 percent. Following is Red River Delta with 3.45 percent, the Central Highlands with 2.9 percent. That of Hanoi is 0.98 percent. Ho Chi Minh City has the lowest figure with 0.54 percent.

 

The GSO said that, in 2012, Vietnam could hardly achieve its planned GDP, mainly because of difficulties of enterprises. However, unemployment rate of the first 9 months was 2.01 percent, 0.33 percent lower from the same period of 2011. Mr Lam explained that because of the culture, the Vietnamese will do everything when underemployed, even a new job unrelated to the old one, to earn a salary. The survey on labour and employment, conducted by the GSO since 2007, is conducted monthly and its results announced quarterly. In 2013, the survey will include more issues, such as official and non-official employment areas, more questions will be given related to migration and labour mobility in order to produce more accurate and specific results, helping the Government and management authorities devise appropriate policies and solutions based on empirical evidence, as well as supporting sustainable economic development.

 

According to Mr Gyorgy Sziraczki, Director of ILO Vietnam, the 2012 employment survey again showed the impact of the larger economy on employment. Therefore, the Government needs more resources to solve the problem of informal economy - partly linking with low productivity, lack of social security and low income. Besides that, Vietnam also needs more effective policies to address issues of gender inequality in the labour force, especially the number of unemployed females being still higher than males.