Restructuring labor, adapting to the new situation - Part 1: Ensuring social security for repatriated workers
(Baonghean.vn) - The fourth wave of the Covid-19 pandemic has been strongly affecting the country's socio-economic life, including the labor shortage due to population migration, forcing millions of workers away from home to return home.
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| Medical check-up for Nghe An workers working in Bac Giang when being welcomed back to their hometown for quarantine in June 2021. Photo: Nghe An Newspaper Document |
PROACTIVELY FOLLOW THE SITUATION OF RETURNED LABOR
Nghe An has a large number of workers living and working away from home. This is an advantage but also creates pressure on the locality when an epidemic occurs, forcing theworkers must repatriateand the overseas labor market is frozen...
For the first batch of workers, the province sponsored all expenses, including car rental, testing, and accommodation in the quarantine area. In total, over 2,200 workers were safely welcomed back to their hometowns.That is why, in June 2021, as soon asCovid-19 epidemicoutbreaks in northern provinces such as Bac Giang, Bac Ninh, Hai Duong,... The Department of Labor - Invalids and Social Affairs has coordinated with localities to advise the province and prepare dozens of buses to pick up workers from northern provinces to return.
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| The province organized a bus to pick up 60 Mong workers from Ky Son district from Binh Thuan to return home at the end of August 2021. Photo: Nguyen Hai |
After the temporary stabilization of the northern workers' return, the Covid-19 epidemic broke out in the southern provinces and cities such as Ho Chi Minh City, Dong Nai, Binh Duong... According to preliminary statistics, there are about 150,000 Nghe An workers working in the epidemic areas. If the workers have to return to their hometowns at the same time, no one wants it.
However, in reality, there are about 256,000 Nghe An people living, studying, working, and residing in the provinces and cities. From April to October 2021, nearly 100,000 people returned to their hometowns to avoid the epidemic.
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| Connect with businesses to find jobs for workers. In the photo: Graduates of the Vietnam - Korea College of Technology and Economics at the 2021 labor connection fair. Photo: Contributor |
The above reality poses a huge challenge for Nghe An in ensuring social security and creating jobs for repatriated workers. Faced with the unprecedented situation above, on the one hand, the Department of Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs of the province advised the province to closely follow the epidemic prevention regulations of the Government and the Central Steering Committee for Epidemic Prevention to issue guidelines on receiving workers returning to their hometowns for quarantine according to epidemic prevention and control requirements; at the same time, directing localities to survey and grasp the situation of children of workers working far away.
On the other hand, the Department of Labor, Invalids and Social Affairs of the province, on behalf of the Provincial People's Committee, coordinated with other provinces to connect with the situation of Nghe An laborers in the localities. Since July, based on the assignment of the Provincial People's Committee, the Department of Labor, Invalids and Social Affairs has contacted and connected with localities and through the Association of Nghe An Compatriots and Business Associations in the provinces to grasp the situation and wishes of workers who want to return to their hometowns to report to the province on support policies and citizen reception.
Normally, the data on the management of workers away from home is only relative and does not detail the circumstances of poor or difficult households. However, this time, due to the related policies to support workers away from home when returning home, the industry is forced to rebuild the database so that the province can have appropriate plans, scenarios and support solutions.
According to a survey by the Department of Labor, Invalids and Social Affairs, Nghe An has 256,000 people living, studying and working in provinces and cities across the country. Of these, over 130,000 are workers in industrial parks or freelancers in the southern provinces and nearly 30,000 are workers in the northern provinces...
TIMELY CONSULTATION ON SUPPORT SOLUTIONS
Based on the specific number of workers in the localities, Nghe An has developed scenarios and plans to welcome citizens back home to ensure epidemic prevention and control requirements. Specifically, along with openingelectronic portalIn order for citizens to register to return to their hometowns, the Department of Labor, Invalids and Social Affairs and a number of departments and branches have advised the Provincial People's Committee on plans to welcome workers back. At this time, based on the registration of more than 90,000 people, the Department of Labor, Invalids and Social Affairs has had to work at full capacity to classify priority subjects.
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| Nghe An Textile and Garment Industry is in need of recruiting many workers but the weakness is that the income is not really attractive so many freelance workers returning home are not really ready. Photo: Nguyen Hai |
However, later, due to changes in government regulations, the plan to welcome citizens back home was not implemented, instead, only support was given to welcome stranded workers in especially difficult circumstances. At this time, due to the extremely tense situation, the Provincial People's Committee allocated 2 billion VND from the budget to provide relief to 1,000 households of workers in especially difficult circumstances in the epidemic area; at the same time, mobilized funding sources to welcome 1,700 workers in especially difficult circumstances back to their hometowns for free on 8 flights.
From July to September, the province organized 21 flights to welcome over 2,980 citizens in especially difficult circumstances and dozens of buses to transport ethnic minority workers working in the southern provinces back to their hometowns safely.
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| Ky Son workers attend a job connection event at the Job Fair organized by the Department of Labor, Invalids and Social Affairs at the end of October. Photo: Tien Dong |
Along with organizing the reception of citizens in a centralized manner, the Department of Transport and the Department of Labor, Invalids and Social Affairs also coordinated with the provinces to grasp the number of workers who need to return to their hometowns so that the Provincial People's Committee could establish a Working Group to receive citizens at the Ben Thuy bridge. Here, workers were received, medically examined and arranged vehicles for centralized quarantine or to be taken back to their hometowns for quarantine according to regulations. As of the beginning of the fourth quarter of 2021, nearly 100,000 people had returned to their hometowns, of which 75,858 were of working age (accounting for 75.95% of the number of citizens returning to their hometowns).
The Department of Labor, Invalids and Social Affairs has also promptly advised on solutions to implement Resolution 68/CP dated July 1, 2021 and other Decrees of the Government onsupport people, businesses and workers in difficultydue to Covid-19 epidemic; organize statistics and classify affected freelance workers in the area to have support solutions.
Since mid-August 2021, based on Decision No. 22 of the Provincial People's Committee on supporting workers without contracts, freelance workers and some other special subjects facing difficulties due to Covid-19, the Department has completed procedures to submit to the province for approval of an amount of over 115 billion VND, supporting 76,719 workers (as of November 30, 2021). In addition, the Department of Labor, Invalids and Social Affairs has advised the province on 2 documents to urge implementation; at the same time, coordinated with departments and branches to conduct online dialogues to remove difficulties for businesses; received documents to resolve unemployment insurance benefits for 15,000 people.
(Source: Department of Labor, Invalids and Social Affairs of Nghe An province)
A representative of the Nghe An Department of Finance shared: Compared to 2020, the 4th wave of the pandemic in 2021 has had a huge impact and impact, and more people are affected by the Covid-19 pandemic. However, due to limited funding and the province's budget not being balanced, the province is also under a lot of pressure and must consider and "cut your coat according to your cloth" when assessing the support payment list.