Among nearly half of respondents okay with a pay reduction, 69 percent would only accept the cut to last three months at most, according to a survey of online recruitment company VietnamWorks.

Most want the reduction to be 30 percent or less, said the survey, which polled 3,400 employees and 400 employers in April.

The pandemic has caused major disruptions in Vietnam’s labor market, with 40 percent of employees saying they had lost their job, while 30 percent saw their income shrink.

Six out of ten employers said they had cut staff salaries by at least 25 percent, some going as far as 80 percent or over.

In terms of layoffs, most employers had chosen to cut entry-level and inexperienced staff, seeking to hire experienced employees when business resumes normality.

But employers provided mixed answers on when recruitment would resume. Near 36 percent said three to six months, while 20 percent remained mum.

VietnamWorks said the job tally is now recovering after Vietnam ended its three-week social distancing campaign on April 23, with number of job posts on its website rising 20 percent in the first week of May from a week prior.

Two-thirds of employers said they would prioritize recruiting employees they had let go, while 60 percent of employees said they would accept if asked to return.

A General Statistics Office report showed that since mid-April, five million workers had seen their hours reduced or lost their job due to the pandemic.

The number of companies temporarily suspending business in the first quarter rose 26 percent year-on-year to 18,600, it added.