Vietnam’s labor market in the first half of 2021 was heavily affected by the 3rd and 4th outbreaks of the Covid-19 pandemic, according to the Vietnam General Statistics Office’s report released on July 6.
According to the report, in the second quarter of 2021, up to 12.8 million Vietnamese people aged 15 and older were negatively affected by the Covid-19 epidemic, including those who lost their jobs, had to take time off or rotate work, or had reduced working hours and decreased income. Compared to the previous quarter, an additional 3.7 million workers were negatively affected by the pandemic.
Out of a total of 12.8 million people negatively impacted by the Covid-19 pandemic, 557,000 people lost their jobs, accounting for 4.4%; 4.1 million people had to temporarily suspend their business, accounting for 31.8%; 4.3 million people had their working hours cut or had to take time off or rotated work, accounting for 34.1%; and 8.5 million workers had their income reduced, accounting for 66.4%.
The number of employed laborers aged 15 and over in the second quarter of 2021 were 49.9 million, a decrease of 65,000 people from the previous quarter and up nearly 1.8 million people over the same period of last year. Particularly, employment in rural areas was 31.8 million people, a reduction of 369,300 people compared to the previous quarter and up 581,200 people year on year. The number of employed women was nearly 23.4 million people, down by 110,400 people compared to the previous quarter and up 1.4 million people year on year.
In the second quarter of 2021, employed laborers in the agriculture, forestry and fishery industries were 13.8 million, down 2.25% from the previous quarter and up 3.47% year on year; employed workers in the service sector were 19.4 million people, down 1.32% from the previous quarter and up 3.79% over the same period of 2020; and the industry and construction sector had 16.6 million employed workers, up 3.19% from the previous quarter, and 3.64% year on year.
The rate of workers with informal employment in the second quarter of 2021 was 57.4%, up 0.3 percentage points from the previous quarter and 1.6 percentage points over the same period last year.
The number of underemployed workers in the second quarter of 2021 was 1.1 million people, an increase of 173,500 people compared to the previous quarter and a decrease of 137,100 people compared to the same period of 2020. The underemployment rate in the second quarter of 2021 was 2.60%, up 0.4 percentage points from the previous quarter and down 0.38 percentage points over the same period last year.
“The faster, stronger, more difficult-to-control outbreak of the fourth wave of Covid-19 has caused the underemployment rate in the urban area to be higher than that in the rural area, with 2.8% and 2.49%, respectively”, said the General Statistics Office.
The number of unemployed workers in the second quarter of 2021 was nearly 1.2 million people, an increase of 87,100 people compared to the previous quarter and a decrease of 82,100 people compared to the same period last year. The unemployment rate in the second quarter of 2021 was 2.62%, up 0.2 percentage points compared to the previous quarter and down 0.23 percentage points year on year.
The employed workers aged 15 and older in the first half of 2021 were 49.9 million people, an increase of 788,700 people over the same period last year.
The number of underemployed workers in the first half of 2021 was more than 1.1 million people, an increase of 48,200 people compared to the same period of last year.
The number of young people (aged 15-24) who were unemployed in the first half of 2021 was about 398,900 people, accounting for 34.0% of the total number of unemployed people.
However, the average monthly income of employed workers in the first half of 2021 was VND6.2 million ($300), an increase of VND320,000 ($15) year on year. The average income of male workers was VND1.42 times higher than that of female workers (equivalent to VND7.2 million and VND5.1 million). The average income of workers in the urban area was VND7.7 million, and in rural areas VND5.3 million.
By Luong Bang, originally posted in Vietnamnet.
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Source: Vietnam Insider