The 'problem' of returning home for Tet for Nghe An workers far from home

According to the plan, for the Lunar New Year, officials and employees will have 9 days off from January 27, 2025 to February 2, 2025. However, due to the nature of their work, many Nghe An workers have not yet been able to determine the exact time to return home for Tet. This makes them not dare to book tickets early to get tickets and reduce costs.

At the beginning of December, train tickets are fluctuating from 800,000 VND to 1,400,000 VND. Meanwhile, plane tickets have increased to over 3,000,000 VND for a flight from Can Tho to Vinh or from Ho Chi Minh City to Vinh. It is forecasted that in the coming time, train and plane ticket prices will continue to increase, making the cost of workers returning home for Tet increasingly high.

Near the time of Tet Giap Thin 2024, train and bus ticket prices have increased to over 2,000,000 VND/ticket, while plane tickets have also reached nearly 5,000,000 VND. In addition to the price issue, the scarcity of tickets also causesworkersIt is difficult to choose a suitable means of transport to be able to go home most comfortably.

To facilitate the staff to return home for Tet, some companies have announced their construction and production plans early. This helps workers proactively book train and bus tickets to reduce costs. In particular, many companies have also proactively rented sleeper buses to take staff home for Tet and pick them up after the break. The cost of these trips can be up to nearly 150 million VND for a round trip.

Although the amount spent is very large, this helps employees feel secure in their work when Tet is approaching. Meanwhile, the Tet buses will help companies take the initiative in time and labor resources after Tet.

However, not all companies have such a detailed schedule and preparation. This makes workers quite worried when thinking about train and bus tickets for Tet. Especially for workers in areas where transportation is not convenient.

Mr. Ho Van Linh (from Dien Chau, Nghe An) - a worker at a private company in Kien Giang said: "Due to the urgent construction progress of the project, our Tet holiday plan has not been specifically determined, so we cannot book plane tickets early. I am worried that the closer to Tet, the higher the ticket prices will be while the company's ticket support is not worth much. Moreover, to get to the airports, we still have to go through 2-3 train and bus stops. Every time we think about going home for Tet, workers far from home have a headache."

Vo Dinh Nam (from Nghi Loc) - a construction machine driver in the Western provinces - is also in a similar situation. Although he has regular car connections to go to Nghe An, he is still haunted by the thought of having to squeeze into a crowded car for a journey of thousands of kilometers near Tet.

"Last year during Tet, the company's leaders arranged overtime to speed up the progress, allowing employees who lived far away to take a break before the Kitchen God worshiping day on December 20th of the lunar calendar. Those who lived nearby were given a later break to complete the remaining workload. This year, taking advantage of the good weather, since mid-November, the company has also continuously worked overtime until 9:00 p.m. Hopefully this year the old way of working will continue to be promoted by the company," said Mr. Nam.

Not as lucky as Mr. Nam and Mr. Linh, Ms. Bui Thi Huyen Trang (Que Phong) and her husband may not be able to return home for Tet because their company is facing many difficulties.hard"This year's income has decreased significantly, so my husband and I will have a hard time buying train and bus tickets for the whole family to go home for Tet, not to mention the expenses for gifts and other purchases. Hopefully in the last months of the year, the company will improve the situation so that the family can have a Tet reunion" - Ms. Trang confided.

Ms. Trang also considered the option of the couple going back to their hometown by motorbike to save money, but this would be an unsafe and very difficult option for this young couple.

Working far from home all year round, the occasion of Tet is the occasion when overseas workers wish to return home to reunite with their families. Hopefully, the journey home of overseas workers will have the support of many organizations, units, businesses...