Vietnam's workforce lacks professionalism, experts say
Vietnam's low labour productivity reflects more the lack of proper training and professionalism than a lack of diligence, experts and entrepreneurs say.
Duong Duc Lan, head of the administration of vocational training under the ministry of labour, invalids and social affairs, says pilot vocational training programmes are needed to improve the quality of workers, otherwise labour productivity in Vietnam is bound lag behind other countries in the region.
In a commentary carried by the Dan Tri newspaper this week, Lan said that in nine Asean Skills competitions, the Vietnamese team had been ranked first twice and had always been among the top teams.
Despite this, the labour productivity in the country is among the lowest in the Asia-Pacific region, according to a recent survey done by the International Labour Organisation (ILO).
In 2013, average labour productivity in Vietnam was one-fifteenth that of Singapore, one-fifth of Malaysia’s and two-fifths of Thailand’s.
The ILO report also said the productivity rates did not necessarily reflect workers’ diligence and ability.
Phan Cong Minh, managing director of Viet Hung JSC in Ho Chi Minh City’s District 12, said his company had hired roughly 2,500 labourers, many of whom were farmers with no prior job training. As a result, many were willing to quit and do agricultural work if they were offered higher payment. This affected the company’s production chain, he said.
Minh said the workforce must be trained in skills, work discipline and work responsibility if productivity is to improve.
