2014 – A bittersweet year for labour exports Vietnam has set another milestone for 2014, sending in excess of 105,000 guest workers abroad – the highest figure ever recorded, reports the Department of Overseas Labour Management (DOLM). The numbers for traditional markets break down as follows: Taiwan with more than 60,000 workers (14,000 more than 2013’s figure), Japan with nearly 20,000 (up 10,400), the Republic of Korea (nearly 7,000 workers), Malaysia (nearly 5,000 workers), Arab Saudi (nearly 4,000 workers) and Qatar (nearly 1,000 workers). However, Tong Hai Nam, Deputy Head of the DOLM says 2014 wasn’t  a favourable year of the labour export sector as 1,750 Vietnamese guest workers in Libya had to return home due to political conflict. In addition, the Republic of Korea (RoK) suspended the employment permit system (EPS) programme due to high rate of illegal workers in the country, resulting in temporary ending of recruiting new workers. However, despite the shortcomings labour exports still made a breakthrough with a record high of 105,000 guest workers, Nam says. Nguyen Luong Trao, President of the Vietnam Labour Exports Association (VLEA) attributed the achievement to increasing number of guest workers in Northeast Asian countries that received more than 90,000 labourers, accounting for 86% of total guest workers in 40 markets.  For instance, Taiwan saw the highest number of Vietnamese guest workers since Vietnam began sending its workers to the market. Nguyen Ngoc Quynh, Head of the DOLM in turn says strictly dealing with violators and reducing fees for labourers over the past two years has facilitated sending workers to Taiwan. Furthermore, the number of businesses exploiting the Japanese market rose from 40 to 100 currently, Quynh adds. Prosperity in high-income markets According to the Ministry of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs, together with traditional markets, new markets with high and average income should open more opportunities for Vietnamese workers like Africa, and Middle East. The country has been negotiating agreements in a number of fields for labourers in Angola and Arab Saudi, helping ensure their safety. Doors should also open in Japan in 2015 as Japan prepares for the Tokyo Summer Olympics in 2020. In 2015 key markets should be Taiwan, Middle East and Japan. In fact, many businesses which exploit the Japanese market have increased their supply quotas. For instance, Sovilaco has risen from 300 to 500 guest workers, he adds Nam says the demand for recruiting high-qualified workers still remains high. However, Vietnamese workers have not gained in reputation from foreign employers due to limited qualification, skills and foreign languages. In the past, Vietnamese high-qualified workers had only a chance to work in the RoK, now they can work in Japan and Germany. The DOLM has been implementing a project to support Vietnamese labourers to work overseas. With better training qualifications and good foreign language ability, they should have more chances to work in high demanding markets, Hai states. VOV