To maximize the effectiveness of the job exchange platform.

(Baonghean)With the aim of improving the effectiveness of job placement for workers, and in accordance with the policy of the Ministry of Labor, Invalids and Social Affairs in October 2010, the Department of Labor, Invalids and Social Affairs launched a job exchange platform directly managed and operated by the Provincial Job Placement Center. However, after 3 years of operation, the platform has not achieved the expected results.

A job exchange is a place that facilitates job matching, allows businesses to conduct interviews, and recruit directly at job fairs; it also organizes and receives applications for job searching, vocational training, and direct recruitment through a computer system. In simpler terms, a job exchange can be understood as a "marketplace" where buyers (businesses) and sellers (workers) meet directly, exchange information about skills, qualifications, salaries, working conditions, etc., and ultimately sign agreements and employment contracts.

In our province, since the opening of the job exchange, the Provincial Job Placement Center has organized 47 job fairs with nearly 500 businesses and nearly 13,000 workers participating; it has provided advice to nearly 10,000 workers and referred nearly 1,200 people to jobs. Mr. Ho Ngoc Hung, Director of the Center, stated: “The Center has intensified its efforts in disseminating information about available occupations, job openings, salary structures, insurance schemes, and employee benefits offered by businesses. Simultaneously, we have contacted relevant agencies and units in the area to promote and introduce the activities of the job exchange. Through these exchange sessions, many workers have found stable employment, and businesses have found suitable candidates to meet their requirements. Furthermore, management agencies and vocational training institutions can closely monitor the labor supply and demand situation in the market to develop solutions to improve the quality of the workforce.”

However, compared to the initial target of 50-70 job seekers per session, the job fair has not yet attracted enough job seekers or businesses to participate in recruitment. Attending the job fair on August 10th, we observed a lack of enthusiasm. According to regulations, starting in September 2012, the job fair will hold two sessions per month, on the 10th and 25th, in both morning and afternoon.

However, based on our observations, job seekers only show up in large numbers in the early morning, decreasing significantly around 10 am. Out of 10 companies that registered to recruit, only 4 actually came to recruit: Ha Thanh Mechanical and Construction Company, Hung Phat Joint Stock Company, Hien Dung Trading & Service Company Limited, and Construction Investment Joint Stock Company No. 4. In this job fair, 310 job seekers registered, but only 90 participated in interviews. Furthermore, according to aggregated data from 2012 to the present, each job fair averages only 10-12 participating companies. The number of job seekers who find employment through these job fairs is low, approximately 20-25 people per fair.

Job seekers participate in interviews at the job fair on August 10th.

Mr. Dang Cao Thang, Deputy Director of the Department of Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs, stated: The job fair is not yet vibrant, mainly because businesses in the area are operating inefficiently due to the impact of the economic downturn, leading to low job opportunities. Furthermore, most businesses are small and medium-sized, with limited investment capital and a lack of detailed, long-term production and business plans, resulting in haphazard and piecemeal human resource development.

Another reason is the lack of information about job fairs among workers and businesses. At the job fair on August 10th, Ms. Tran Thi Kieu Loan (born in 1989), residing in Dien Thap - Dien Chau, a graduate of the University of Agriculture in November 2012, said: “Currently, very few people in my hometown know about job fairs. I only knew about it through my cousin's introduction, and before coming to the fair, I didn't even know what a job fair was.” Regarding businesses, Mr. Ho Sy Phuc, Director of Phu Son Construction Investment Co., Ltd., located in Hamlet 18, Nghi Phu Commune (Vinh City), said: "I only heard about job fairs through friends, but I saw little updated information about them, so I didn't know how effective they were for recruitment, and therefore I didn't want to participate." Upon investigation, it was found that, in order to promote the job exchange, the Job Placement Center has only contacted industrial parks in the province, the Provincial Youth Union, and vocational schools in the area… and has not yet intensified its宣传 efforts in local areas, distributed leaflets, or used mass media… to ensure that laborers in the province are aware of the job exchange.

Due to a lack of specific information about the job exchange, many workers and businesses are not well-prepared to achieve the best results. Furthermore, many workers come to the job exchange with the mindset of merely "going through the motions." A representative from Ha Thanh Mechanical and Construction Joint Stock Company commented: "Many workers submit very superficial applications, only to explore and learn about job interview procedures to gain experience, rather than genuinely seeking employment." Similarly, businesses only conduct preliminary screenings and do not immediately select and respond to workers, leading to low transaction results at the exchange.

Another limitation, according to Mr. Nguyen Dang Duong, head of the Labor - Employment - Wages - Social Insurance Department (Department of Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs), is that the staff working at the job exchange center have not received proper training; they have not been able to investigate and gather much information about labor needs inside and outside the province. The advice on skills for preparing applications, interviews, and presentations for workers has not been thorough, leading to a lack of enthusiasm among workers coming to the center. Furthermore, despite an initial investment of 3 billion VND, after 3 years of operation, the entire job exchange center still only operates in a room of about 70 square meters with about 10 computers for information retrieval, and the interview area is cramped, failing to meet the needs of workers and businesses.

Furthermore, the labor supply-demand balance remains unbalanced. According to Mr. Duong Xuan Phuc, Deputy Head of the Information and Market Department at the Provincial Job Placement Center, most businesses participating in the job fair are small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), primarily recruiting mechanical and technical workers and unskilled laborers. Meanwhile, the majority of applicants are college or university graduates (over 60%). For example, at the job fair on August 10th, out of 310 applicants, over 200 had university or college degrees. Moreover, businesses require experience for workers in this category, while most applicants are recent graduates or have only recently graduated…

According to the Nghe An Provincial Employment Program for the period 2011-2015, approved by the Provincial People's Committee in Decision No. 3947/QD-UBND dated September 26, 2011, the province aims to create jobs for 40,000 workers each year. To achieve this goal, in addition to effectively implementing economic development programs and projects, shifting the labor structure appropriately, and promoting vocational training to improve the quality of the workforce, the development of the labor market, including improving the efficiency of job exchanges, plays a crucial role.

In my opinion, to effectively address this issue, relevant agencies need to strengthen communication efforts to raise awareness among businesses and workers about job exchanges; invest more in infrastructure and improve the skills of staff; and enhance information sharing with job exchanges in provinces and cities nationwide to find more job opportunities for workers…

According to data from the Ministry of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs, currently 45 out of 63 provinces and cities nationwide have implemented job fairs. Some job fairs in localities such as Hanoi, Bac Ninh, Da Nang, Ho Chi Minh City, Long An, Binh Duong, Dong Nai, etc., are considered very effective, with each fair attracting 30-40 businesses and 600-800 job seekers, of which about 300-400 are pre-selected through the job fair. However, only over 30 job fairs operate regularly, with a frequency of 1-2 fairs per month.

Text and photos: Minh Quân