Due to robust economic growth, the country’s unemployment rate, especially among higher-education people, last quarter decreased significantly compared to the previous quarter and the same period in 2016.

At a function last week to deliver a report on the Vietnamese labor market in last year’s quarter four, Doan Mau Diep, Deputy Minister of Labor, Invalids and Social Affairs, said the country posted a high GDP growth rate of 7.7% last quarter. The establishment of new enterprises and the development of existing companies helped create more jobs, reducing the jobless rate.

Particularly, 1.07 million working-age people were unemployed in quarter four last year, down 3,600 people over the previous quarter and 38,800 people against the year-ago period.

It is worth noting that holders of bachelor and Master’s degrees registered an unemployment rate of 4.12%, a decrease by 21,700 people versus quarter three last year to 215,300 people.

The jobless rate among young people also went down to 7.07%. There were 545,900 jobless young people in 2017’s quarter four, 65,000 people fewer than the previous quarter.

In general, last quarter saw positive results in the economic landscape such as more college and university graduates, higher number of employees, higher income for workers and lower jobless rate. In addition, the number of workers in the agro-forestry-fishery sector went down while there were more jobs in the processing, manufacturing, construction and service sectors.

As for income, the average monthly salary of wage earners was VND5.41 million, up 0.8% over the previous quarter and 6.5% against the last quarter of 2016. Holders of university degrees earned VND7.74 million per month while graduates from vocational schools received the lowest salary of some VND5.7 million a month, said Dao Quang Vinh, director of the Institute of Labor, Science and Social Affairs under the Ministry of Labor, Invalids and Social Affairs.

Explaining the salary hike of only 0.8% compared to the previous quarter, Vinh noted the pay rise is lower than the economic growth but this quarter might see a bigger rise in salaries.

The Ministry of Labor forecast the labor market might achieve positive results this quarter and the number of employees might reach 54.2 million, up 150,000 people versus the last quarter.

Some sectors may need more workers such as electronic accessories, computers and optical devices manufacturing, ore mining, furniture production and wastewater drainage and treatment.

Meanwhile, the number of workers will decrease in tobacco production, electricity generation and distribution and agro-forestry-fishery sectors.

SGT