A rapid increase in the number of job seekers, along with changes in career trends, has raised new issues in connecting supply and demand as well as orienting local workforce development.

Improved labour market

Since the beginning of this year, the labour market in the key southern economic zone has recovered as domestic and foreign economies have gradually adapted to fluctuations in the global supply chain, raw material prices and operating costs.

The sharp increase in the number of job seekers is a signal that the labour situation has improved after the Lunar New Year holiday, reflecting increased demand for freelancers and short-term positions.

According to the Binh Duong Employment Service Centre, the market has 24,146 job seekers, while businesses’ recruitment demand is 20,312 workers.

In the first quarter of this year, the centre organised 10 job fairs with more than 95 businesses, providing about 5,400 recruitment targets.

Recruitment trends focused mainly on workers serving the garment, electronics, logistics and food processing industries.

Deputy Director of the Binh Duong Department of Home Affairs Pham Van Tuyen said that compared to the same period last year, the number of job seekers in the province in Q1 increased sharply, reaching 46.46%.

The Binh Duong Federation of Labour reported that local enterprises’ recruitment demand in the first quarter was more than 20,000 workers.

This number is expected to remain the same in the second quarter.

Since the start of the year, businesses in Dong Nai province have been operating stably and recruiting production workers.

According to the Dong Nai Employment Service Centre, the province's labour demand this year is forecast to be about 75,000 people.

In the first three months this year, hundreds of enterprises in Dong Nai recruited nearly 30,000 workers, mainly in electricity, electronics, sewing and embroidery, leather shoes, textile dyeing, fashion design, architectural construction, and interior wood decoration.

Director of the centre Tran Thi Bich Tram said, in addition to supporting job referrals through various channels, the centre also connects businesses to participate in online job fairs in the Mekong Delta, the southeast region, and neighbouring provinces and cities.

The centre links businesses with online employment service centres in neighbouring provinces to provide information about the job market and search for workers to meet enterprises' production needs.

The key labour market in the south has therefore shown positive signs of improvement.

However, according to a survey by the Binh Duong Employment Service Centre, businesses lack workers who meet the right requirements in terms of skills and experience, leading to a situation where a plethora of workers are lacking suitable job opportunities.

Solutions

Data from the Binh Duong Employment Service Centre shows that the total number of job seekers in the first three months this year was 24,146.

The most sought-after industry group was the garment sector (5,915 people), followed by office workers (2,865), construction (2,128), woodworking (1,737), and information technology (1,157).

Notably, technical workers, welders, mechanics and assemblers have a relatively low number of job seekers compared to high actual demand from businesses.

The surplus of labour in accounting, office and driving-related fields shows that the market is entering strong structural adjustment.

On the one hand, many businesses are switching to integrated accounting and human resources software. Meanwhile, digitisation trends in commerce, administration and transportation services are causing repetitive jobs to be rapidly replaced with new technology.

This imbalance is partly due to the preference for administrative office, engineering and technology positions, while in reality the market is seriously lacking skilled technical workers, especially as many foreign direct investment (FDI) enterprises have expanded production after COVID-19.

In addition, digital transformation and automation have also caused demand for office work, accounting and general workers to gradually narrow, while labourers have not yet adjusted their career expectations accordingly.

This reflects growing unemployment due to a mismatch in industry, wherein workers need to find a job, but their chosen industry does not match recruitment needs.

According to experts, the issue is mainly due to a lack of market information, unrealistic career orientations and an inadequate education and training mechanism.

“To solve the problem, it is necessary to strengthen the role of the employment service centres in career counselling, market analysis and training linkages according to business orders,” Tuyen said.

He added that in the era of digital transformation, upskilling is extremely important, going on to stress the urgency of retraining and improving skills to adapt to new market requirements, a particularly urgent need for industrial-service localities like Binh Duong.

The Binh Duong Employment Service Centre continues to play a key role in maintaining the stability of the labour market through consulting activities, job introductions and organising regular transaction sessions.

Recent results show remarkable efforts in regulating labour supply and demand in the province.

Commenting on the employment situation, Chairman of the Binh Duong Labour Federation Pham Trong Nhan said: "Enterprises are facing an imbalance in labour supply and demand. Many enterprises prioritise recruiting workers under 35 years old, requiring technical skills, professional skills and soft skills, but many workers do not meet this requirement.”

“Workers tend to look for jobs close to home, making it difficult for businesses to retain workers. Some businesses still apply traditional recruitment methods and different salaries and benefits between businesses, making the number of workers unstable," he said.

To address these shortcomings, Nhan believed that businesses need to communicate about recruitment needs through multiple channels and forms such as online platforms or company websites, and trade unions to expand their reach.

They should enhance their corporate image through community activities, offer attractive benefits for potential employees and regularly participate in job fairs organised by local departments of home affairs.

Enterprises should also create policies on salary and bonuses as well as create conditions for workers to improve skills and support workers with housing, kindergarten or travel expenses, he said.

In addition to creating a positive working environment, firms should take care of workers’ spiritual lives, encourage creativity, and appreciate the contributions of each individual.

Companies should also create policies on career development to build motivation, invest in self-training or coordinate training according to actual needs.

Up to 120,000 job vacancies available in Hanoi in Q1

Enterprises in Hanoi need to recruit from 100,000-120,000 workers in the first quarter of 2024.