Social distancing measures being introduced in many localities to fight Covid-19 has interrupted supply chains and cut into the supply and demand of human resources.

According to a report from the Hanoi Center of Employee Service (HCES), Vietnam’s labor market in August was negatively affected by the pandemic and the application of social distancing measures.

Hanoi’s labor market faced its greatest impact since the beginning of the year. Many businesses and business households had to suspend operations or operate at low capacity to follow anti-pandemic measures, while production costs remained high and the supply of goods was limited.
Wholesale, retail, vehicle repair, construction, travel, and hospitality were the most-affected sectors in recent times.

Workers continue to be at risk of losing their jobs, taking a pay cut, and suffering poor working conditions.

The prolonged pandemic and social distancing have greatly affected businesses, especially small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). Businesses have either had to pay the associated costs in applying the “3 on the spot” method (where employees live, eat and work on-site) or have lost some of their staff due to quarantine regulations. Faced with operating at less than 50 per cent of capacity, many withdrew from the market.

HCES suggested that businesses apply measures such as reducing staff numbers, rotating leave, and recruiting seasonal workers to maintain operations.