There were nearly 100,000 people applying for unemployment benefits each month this year while the monthly average in 2019 was just 60,000-70,000, according to an official of the Ministry of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs (MoLISA).

The MoLISA's Department of Employment forecast job losses may increase
by about 100,000 every month (Photo: VNA) 

Tao Bang Huy, Deputy Director of the MoLISA’s Department of Employment, said over 686,200 people applied for unemployment benefits in the first seven months of 2020, up 32% year on year, equivalent to almost 100,000 claims monthly.

This department forecast the number of job losses may increase by about 100,000 every month, mainly in such industries as tourism, accommodation and food services, construction, transportation, and processing-manufacturing.

While 70% of all businesses may suffer from COVID-19 impacts, the number of furloughed employees or those with less work to do could rise to between 3.5 million and 5 million.

In the first half of this year, 29,000 companies had to suspend operations for a certain period of time, rising 38.2% from a year earlier. Meanwhile, the number of people of working age with employment declined to 51.8 million, compared to 54.4 million in the same period last year.

Some sectors with strong job cuts included processing-manufacturing, accommodation and food services, education and training, wholesales and retails, and vehicle repair.

Although the labour market in Vietnam has shown signs of recovery, the resurgence of COVID-19 has added a further complication to businesses and their employees.

Vu Thi Thu Thuy, Director of the Population and Labour Statistics Department at the General Statistics Office, did not rule out the possibility of 5 million people becoming unemployed by the year’s end, noting that job losses may continue during the remaining months if business promoting solutions are not carried out drastically.