Cutting out fancy food and limiting spending are two common methods that many young Vietnamese workers living abroad are now using to cope with the current economic challenges.

While many domestic workers are unemployed these days, many young Vietnamese workers or interns living and working in Japan, Taiwan, and Malaysia are worried that their jobs and incomes could be cut.

The fact that he has to go to work five days a week even though he has nothing to do on four of the days, coupled with the ever-worsening exchange rate of the Japanese yen, is very confusing for 22-year-old Phong, 22. 

As a result, the young man now has to spend less on fancy restaurants or other unnecessary things while stockpiling more goods on sale.

Going to work just to look at one another

Phong came to Kagawa Prefecture in Japan as a guest worker for seven months in October this year. Previously, an employment agency offered him a job as a mechanical worker for a corrugated iron roller in a factory for a lump sum of VND250 million (US$10,265).

The pay was an unimaginable amount for Phong and his family. He was promised a monthly salary of more than VND40 million ($1,641) and was told the work would not be too hard, as he would just sit and press buttons on machines. So his family tried to get a loan for him to go to Japan.

The 22-year-old then harbored dreams of starting a business when he could return home from Japan after working there for a few years.

When he came to Japan, Phong had a month to get used to the unfamiliar environment, the people around him, and also the new job of a machine worker.

In addition to the arduous work supported by the machines, Phong had to learn a variety of skills, such as welding, measuring, drilling, steel cutting, and other tasks that he was not familiar with before.

As a young man with a slim build, such new tasks were hard and challenging for him.

Phong had no choice but to study and work. Unfortunately, as he began to familiarize himself with the new tasks, his company encountered emerging difficulties.

“Sometimes we would come to the workshop in a month just to look at one other without doing anything. While one person stayed put, another played games for three or four days in a row some weeks,” the young man said.

As there is less work, his salary has been cut considerably compared to previous months. Currently, his salary is only about VND22 million ($903) a month.

Due to the lower pay, the cost of living is becoming a heavy burden on Phong. The number of weekend get-togethers of Vietnamese workers in Japan, which used to be common, has also decreased for this reason.

During the weeks when there is little work, the workers have to figure out what they can do themselves, such as cleaning, preparing, and doing maintenance on machine systems in the workshops.

“Although working in a machine factory is strenuous and potentially hazardous to my health, my net income is only VND25 million [$1,027]. At the same time, the cost of electricity and water is extremely high,” Phong added.

Once planning to live illegally

In 2022, Tuan joined a plantation in Japan's Kumamoto Prefecture as an agricultural trainee. After more than 1.5 years of working there as a full-time farmer, he has gained a lot of experience.

As for most Vietnamese interns in Japan, the first year is always the toughest as they have to face various challenges such as culture, language, weather, and work. 

Unfortunately, they are in a situation where they have no other choice after borrowing nearly VND300 million ($12,333) to get the job.

By the time Tuan got used to working in the new environment and met more acquaintances, new troubles had already appeared.

At certain points, the plantation’s yields could not be sold, leaving a negative impact on workers like Tuan, whose meager remuneration as a trainee has also been lowered and is around VND16 million ($657) monthly.

Faced with so many obstacles, Tuan said he once thought of fleeing the plantation and living the life of an undocumented immigrant in Japan.

Ultimately, he refrained from doing so because he knew he would become illegal and homeless if he chose that option. Besides, he would probably be caught if he broke the local government’s law.

Tuan tried his best to overcome the challenges and went to the manager of the plantation to ask him for more work. He was willing to take on various jobs, such as driving a tractor or harvester, and preparing the soil for sowing or harvesting.

The manager of the plantation has allowed him and others to take home some farm produce that does not meet quality standards to support the staff during this challenging time. 

On weekends, he and some Vietnamese friends go out to sea to fish, which is great fun and provides more food to save money in hard times.

Japan remains the most popular destination for Vietnamese workers 

According to the Department of Overseas Labor (DOLAB) under Vietnam's Ministry of Labor, War Invalids, and Social Affairs, over 111,500 Vietnamese went overseas for work in January-September. Among them are nearly 39,000 female workers.

The statistics have exceeded the target set by Vietnamese authorities for the entire year in terms of the number of workers who can be sent to work abroad.

Among the popular markets for Vietnamese workers, Japan remains the leader with the largest number of Vietnamese workers, at more than 55,000 people.

Taiwan follows with over 46,000 Vietnamese workers and South Korea with around 2,500 people.

Vietnamese workers work in China, Hungary, Singapore, and Romania as well.

The impact of the weakening global economy

Loan, 35, who works as a freelancer in Malaysia, said her work as a house cleaner or hourly cleaner used to be in high demand in many households.

But from the beginning of 2023 until now, she has had almost no work.

“Maybe the locals are not really in dire straits but they've started cutting down on spending against the backdrop of inflation, the rising cost of living, and higher goods prices," she said.

"Therefore, the first thing they would do is stop hiring a homemaker, instead sorting out everything themselves."

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