HCM City Department of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs Deputy Director Huynh Le Nhu Trang said that around 142,700 people in HCM City had applied for unemployment benefits in the first ten months of this year, up 10.9 percent against the same period of last year.
Workers came to the HCM City Employment Service Centre for unemployment benefit application: Photo by Vo Tho
Many firms have laid off staff because of fewer orders. In addition, unemployed people in neighbouring provinces of Ho Chi Minh City also come to the city's Employment Service Centre to register for unemployment benefits. This has contributed to the higher number of unemployment benefit applications.
In October, HCM City’s employment index decreased by 3.2 percent on-year. The layoff wave has also been forecasted to continue in the fourth quarter of this year.
The department will hold job fairs before the year-end to help workers find employment, according to the HCM City Department of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs.
The department reported that businesses in HCM City need around 75,500-81,500 staff in the fourth quarter of this year, with the services and retail sector accounting for 70.1 percent of that total, followed by the industrial and construction sector with 29.6 percent.
