Over 540,000 Vietnamese youths to lose jobs due to Covid-19 fallout

By Nguyen Quy   August 18, 2020 | 11:48 pm PT
Over 540,000 Vietnamese youths to lose jobs due to Covid-19 fallout
Employees work at a garment factory in Ho Chi Minh City. Photo by Reuters/Yen Duong.
If the Covid-19 pandemic is contained within six months, 548,000 people in the 15-24 age group are likely to lose their jobs, according to a new report.

This would be equivalent to a youth unemployment rate of 13.2 percent, double last year’s 6.9 percent, the report released on Tuesday by the Asian Development Bank (ADB) and International Labor Organization (ILO) said.

But that is the worst-case scenario, and if it is defeated within three months the job loss is estimated at 370,000, equivalent to a 10.8 percent jobless rate.

The textile industry is forecast to be the hardest hit, at 15 percent, followed by hotels and restaurants (13.6 percent) and agriculture (10.6 percent).

Textiles and footwear companies are suffering from falling orders and lack of raw materials, forcing massive layoffs, while entry restrictions for foreigners are take a heavy toll on tourism and catering.

A survey by the General Statistics Office released in early July said that in the first half of the year, nearly 31 million workers aged 15 or more have been affected by the Covid-19 pandemic.

Some 17.6 million people received less income than before the outbreak.

Experts said the economy is yet to recover from the fallout of the country's first wave of Covid-19, and the second wave since July 25 is likely to worsen the labor market.

The Ministry of Labor, Invalids and Social Affairs estimated that 60,000-70,000 people will lose their jobs every month until the end of the year, mostly in tourism, services, construction, transport, and manufacturing.

 
 
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