Phạm Oanh, whose hometown is in Thừa Thiên-Huế Province, has been a construction worker in the southern provinces for about 10 years. Normally, he returns to work in the southern provinces after Tết (Lunar New Year).

However, after the COVID-19 outbreak, he decided to look for a job in his hometown and is now working at a cement company in the province.

Phạm Kim Yến, who lives in Thừa Thiên-Huế Province and works for a garment export foreign company in Bình Dương Province, said that her company had to temporarily close for a few months.

“I had to look for another job and now I work for a local garment company. The income is lower than when I worked in Bình Dương. However, I don't have to pay rent for a house and the living cost in Bình Dương is higher than in Thừa Thiên-Huế.”

Trương Thị Thúy Liên, director of a leather and footwear export company in Bình Dương, said that many workers who had returned home for the Tết holiday did not return to work because of the COVID-19 pandemic. "My company is constantly recruiting but it is not enough. Estimated shortage is about 15 per cent."

Lê Nhật Tương, chairman of Pousung Việt Nam Ltd in Đồng Nai Province, said the company had built more factories and planned to recruit about 10,000 workers in 2020. However, since the beginning of the year, only 1,000 new employees have been recruited, and the recruitment plan has been suspended.

In addition to adding more workers when there is a need to expand production, Pousung Company annually recruits new employees to supplement workers and 'job skippers', Tương said.

The food service sector also faces a shortage of workers. Many restaurants, cafes, and commercial services in HCM City have had to scale down or close because of the shortage of workers.

Lê Thành Nhân, owner of a large restaurant in HCM City’s District 1, said that of his 100 workers, "more than half are from central provinces and they have not returned because the COVID-19 pandemic is not fully under control" .

Liên’s footwear company has decided to outsource some stages of production when there are too many orders.

For Pousung Company, the company will invest in technology to reduce manual labour, continue its annual recruitment and training plans for employees, and provide incentive policies for new employees, according to Tương. VNS