More than 40% of Nghe An workers flee from their workplaces abroad.

Comrades: Le Minh Thong - Member of the Provincial Party Committee, Vice Chairman of the Provincial People's Committee; Nguyen Bang Toan - Member of the Provincial Party Committee; Director of the Department of Labor, Invalids and Social Affairs chaired the conference.

Attending the conference were representatives of the Provincial Party Committee's Propaganda Department, the Provincial Party Committee's Mass Mobilization Department, the Provincial People's Council and businesses and units operating labor export services in the province.

Conference scene. Photo: Thanh Nga

Nghe An has 61,518 workers working abroad.

At the conference, Mr. Dang Cao Thang - Deputy Director of the Department of Labor, Invalids and Social Affairs said: In order to meet the demand for labor export in the province, last year the province promoted information and propaganda work, popularizing the State's mechanisms and policies on labor export; publicly and transparently announcing the market, salary regime, and income of workers who want to work abroad, thereby limiting the situation of brokers and fraudulent brokers.

Besides, there have been appropriate policies to attract many units and businesses to participate in recruiting Nghe An workers to work abroad, thereby creating favorable conditions for workers to have the opportunity to choose a suitable market for themselves.

Nghe An continues to lead the country in the number of people going to work abroad. Currently, there are 61,518 Nghe An workers working abroad for a limited period. In 2017, the whole province sent 13,810 workers to work abroad for a limited period under contract. Of which, the majority were in Taiwan with 4,820 people; Malaysia: 1,528 people; South Korea 1,133 people; Japan: 3,112 people; Middle Eastern countries: 1,315 people. The annual income from labor export to the province is estimated at 255 million USD/year.

More than 40% of workers run away from their workplace.

At the conference, the Department of Labor, Invalids and Social Affairs said that in addition to the achieved results, the rate of runaway workers is still high (more than 40%), causing negative consequences not only for the labor market in need but also directly affecting the workers themselves, such as being deported back to the country before the deadline, workers having to pay compensation for contract fees...

Vietnamese workers in Korea are being paid high salaries. Photo: Internet

“Therefore, up to now, markets with good salary treatment like Korea have suspended labor recruitment in 11 districts, towns and communes in the province under the EPS program and this risk may increase if we do not do a good job of propaganda so that workers are aware of the consequences of breaking contracts when working abroad.” – Mr. Nguyen Bang Toan - Director of the Department of Labor, Invalids and Social Affairs worried.

Regarding this, Mr. Nguyen Hong Son - Vice Chairman of Nam Dan District People's Committee suggested: "To overcome this situation, labor supply units need to notify specific one-time fees to workers when committing. Committing to work at a company, then work at that company."

"At the same time, propaganda work needs to be carried out from commune to hamlet, down to households to raise awareness among workers. There needs to be specific sanctions for each family whose workers break their contracts" - Many delegates attending the conference proposed.

In addition, the situation of people voluntarily or through brokers going to some countries such as Angola, Japan, Korea, Australia, Canada, Eastern European countries,... to work without labor contracts and illegally reside in many forms, traveling, visiting relatives or getting into fake marriages,... has caused many damages to the workers themselves, which was also mentioned at the conference.

Striving to send 13,000 workers to work abroad

In 2018, the whole province sent from 12,500 to 13,000 workers to work abroad. Of which, the rate of policy workers working abroad increased to 30% compared to the total labor force in the whole province; the rate of skilled workers going abroad to work increased to 40%; and the rate of illegal workers residing in Korea was reduced to below 30% (in 2017: 44.5%).

Comrade Le Minh Thong concluded at the conference. Photo: Thanh Nga

Concluding the conference, Mr. Le Minh Thong - Vice Chairman of the Provincial People's Committee affirmed: The province always pays attention to labor export and creates the best conditions for workers to work abroad. Especially in terms of policies and loans for poor workers, policy families...

"Therefore, units and enterprises operating in labor export need to continue to exploit and develop traditional labor markets, while expanding to many new potential markets." - The Vice Chairman requested.

To ensure the maximum rights and obligations of workers working abroad, the Vice Chairman emphasized: The functional sectors need to strengthen the management, inspection and supervision of the recruitment of workers to work abroad in the area. Regularly monitor, detect, prevent and promptly handle violations of the law in the field of labor export.

21 collectives were awarded Certificates of Merit by the Provincial People's Committee for their outstanding achievements in labor export work. Photo: Thanh Nga

On this occasion, 21 collectives were awarded Certificates of Merit by the Provincial People's Committee for their outstanding achievements in labor export work./.