New report
Weak economic recovery does not extend to jobs
Viet Nam’s unemployment slightly increased with growing rate of vulnerable jobs in 2013 as the weak global economy recovery has failed to lead to an improvement in global labour markets, the ILO said, launching a new report on 21 January.
21 January 2014
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tiếng Việt
HANOI (ILO News) – Viet Nam’s unemployment slightly increased with growing rate of vulnerable jobs in 2013 as the weak global economy recovery has failed to lead to an improvement in global labour markets, the ILO said, launching a new report today.
The Global Employment Trends 2014 showed that with global unemployment in 2013 reaching almost 202 million, employment growth remains weak, unemployment continues to rise, especially among young people and large numbers of discouraged potential workers are still outside the labour market.
Profits are being made in many sectors, but those are mainly going into asset markets and not the real economy, damaging long-term employment prospects.
On current trends, an additional 200 million jobs will be created by 2018. This is less than what is required to absorb the growing number of new entrants into the labour market.
“What is urgently needed is a policy re-think. Stronger efforts are needed to accelerate employment creation and to support enterprises that create jobs,” said ILO Director-General Guy Ryder.
Employment prospects in Viet Nam look promising at first glance. The Labour Force Survey for the fourth quarter of 2013, which was released yesterday by the General Statistics Office with the support of the ILO, showed there were more jobs than before, with 862,000 jobs – or 1.7 per cent up in the last quarter of 2013 compared to the previous year. The fastest employment growth rate was in foreign invested enterprises (FDI) with an increase of 4.8 per cent in comparison to the year before. Most of the new jobs were also generated in the services, industry and construction sectors.
Despite a slight increase in unemployment rate to 1.9 per cent from 1.81 per cent in the same period of 2012, Viet Nam remained among the countries with the lowest jobless rate globally.
The report stressed the pressing need to integrate young women and men into the labour force. At present, some 74.5 million people under the age of 25 are unemployed, a global youth unemployment rate of over 13 per cent – more than double the overall global unemployment rate.
Viet Nam’s youth unemployment was even over three times more than the overall unemployment rate, at 5.95 per cent in the last quarter of 2013. While this is well below the global average, the youth unemployment rate in the urban areas remains persistently high, at more than 11 per cent in the period.
In developing countries, informal employment remains widespread. According to the ILO report, the pace of improvements in job quality is slowing down, which means fewer people are moving out of working poverty. In 2013, the number of workers in extreme poverty – living on less than US$1.25 a day – declined by only 2.7 per cent globally, one of the lowest rates over the past decade, with the exception of the immediate crisis years.
Viet Nam recorded a 2.2 per cent increase in vulnerable employment, -- that is, either self-employment or work by contributing family workers -- in the fourth quarter of 2013 against the same period in the previous year whereas overall employment only grew by 1.7 per cent. As a result, vulnerable employment in Viet Nam reached 62.1 per cent of total employment – well above the global figure of 47.7 per cent.
“This trend is worrying. It is crucial to strengthen social protection floors and promote transitions to formal employment, which in turn would support poverty reduction, domestic demand and economic growth.” said ILO Viet Nam Director Gyorgy Sziraczki.
He also added that investment in training relevant to business needs and the entry of young workers into productive and secure employment are “critical areas”.
According to the ILO report, with 23 million people globally estimated to have dropped out of the labour market due to discouragement and rising long-term unemployment, active labour market policies need to be implemented more forcefully to address inactivity and skills mismatch.
Click here for Global Employment Trends 2014: Report, News, Videos and Charts
The Global Employment Trends 2014 showed that with global unemployment in 2013 reaching almost 202 million, employment growth remains weak, unemployment continues to rise, especially among young people and large numbers of discouraged potential workers are still outside the labour market.
Profits are being made in many sectors, but those are mainly going into asset markets and not the real economy, damaging long-term employment prospects.
On current trends, an additional 200 million jobs will be created by 2018. This is less than what is required to absorb the growing number of new entrants into the labour market.
“What is urgently needed is a policy re-think. Stronger efforts are needed to accelerate employment creation and to support enterprises that create jobs,” said ILO Director-General Guy Ryder.
Employment prospects in Viet Nam look promising at first glance. The Labour Force Survey for the fourth quarter of 2013, which was released yesterday by the General Statistics Office with the support of the ILO, showed there were more jobs than before, with 862,000 jobs – or 1.7 per cent up in the last quarter of 2013 compared to the previous year. The fastest employment growth rate was in foreign invested enterprises (FDI) with an increase of 4.8 per cent in comparison to the year before. Most of the new jobs were also generated in the services, industry and construction sectors.
Despite a slight increase in unemployment rate to 1.9 per cent from 1.81 per cent in the same period of 2012, Viet Nam remained among the countries with the lowest jobless rate globally.
Global Employment Trends: Facts and figures |
Youth joblessness and informal employment remain major concerns
The report stressed the pressing need to integrate young women and men into the labour force. At present, some 74.5 million people under the age of 25 are unemployed, a global youth unemployment rate of over 13 per cent – more than double the overall global unemployment rate.Viet Nam’s youth unemployment was even over three times more than the overall unemployment rate, at 5.95 per cent in the last quarter of 2013. While this is well below the global average, the youth unemployment rate in the urban areas remains persistently high, at more than 11 per cent in the period.
In developing countries, informal employment remains widespread. According to the ILO report, the pace of improvements in job quality is slowing down, which means fewer people are moving out of working poverty. In 2013, the number of workers in extreme poverty – living on less than US$1.25 a day – declined by only 2.7 per cent globally, one of the lowest rates over the past decade, with the exception of the immediate crisis years.
Viet Nam’s employment trends at a glance |
Viet Nam recorded a 2.2 per cent increase in vulnerable employment, -- that is, either self-employment or work by contributing family workers -- in the fourth quarter of 2013 against the same period in the previous year whereas overall employment only grew by 1.7 per cent. As a result, vulnerable employment in Viet Nam reached 62.1 per cent of total employment – well above the global figure of 47.7 per cent.
“This trend is worrying. It is crucial to strengthen social protection floors and promote transitions to formal employment, which in turn would support poverty reduction, domestic demand and economic growth.” said ILO Viet Nam Director Gyorgy Sziraczki.
He also added that investment in training relevant to business needs and the entry of young workers into productive and secure employment are “critical areas”.
According to the ILO report, with 23 million people globally estimated to have dropped out of the labour market due to discouragement and rising long-term unemployment, active labour market policies need to be implemented more forcefully to address inactivity and skills mismatch.
Hiring prospectsThe ILO has developed a new indicator that captures employers’ assessment of uncertainty in the labour market of developed countries, using data from the ManpowerGroup’s Employment Outlook Survey. |
Click here for Global Employment Trends 2014: Report, News, Videos and Charts