This is in a study by the country’s only labour confederation. On average workers spend about US$ 280 per month but earn only US$ 200. Vietnam’s minimum wage averages between US$ 124 and US$ 172. About 44 per cent of labour force works overtime for an average of 28.5 hours to earn US$ 36 extra a month.
Hanoi (AsiaNews/Agencies) – The Vietnam General Confederation of Labour (VGCL), the country’s only national trade union, has released its latest study on wages and expenses, which shows that 26 per cent of Vietnamese workers are “barely getting by”. The VGCL is part of the Vietnamese Fatherland Front.
Published two days ago, the study shows that the minimum monthly expenditure of an average worker is 6.5 million dongs (US$ 280) against a basic salary of only 4.7 million dongs (US$ 200).
With respect to average workers, 17.4 per cent say they had "more than enough" money, 43.7 per cent said they had "just enough", 26.5 per cent answered "barely getting by", whilst 12.5 per cent of respondents said their income is not enough to support their family and the are forced to work overtime or do extra work just make ends meet.
Compared to last year, the number of workers who claimed to earn "more than enough" increased by 1.3 per cent. The figure for those who had "just enough" dropped by 7.6 per cent, whilst the figure for those who answered "barely getting by" rose by 8.5 per cent.
Overall, 44 per cent of interviewed workers say that, on average, they work 28.5 hours in overtime and earn on average 832,000 dong (US$ 36) extra each month.
Businesses use Vietnam’s minimum wage, which ranges between 2.86 and 3.98 million dongs (US$ 124 to 172), to calculate the salaries by multiplying the base level by a coefficient assigned to each worker, based on their skills and experience.
The labour confederation is currently asking the government to boost the current minimum wage by 8 per cent next year.