1 salary portion carries the whole family, Can Tho workers plan to go abroad to work

Behind the resignation decision

After many years of working as a worker far from home, Mr. Nguyen Duy Phuong (born in 1987, from Hau Giang) decided to return to Can Tho City to find a new direction.

Previously, Mr. Phuong worked at a business in an industrial park in Tay Ninh province (old Long An province), in charge of the stage of scrubbing leather and pulling silk in the production line. At times when there are many orders, workers have to work continuously day and night, in return for a relatively good income.

Before, I worked day and night continuously, with an income of about 13-16 million VND per month; in peak months, it was even more than 15 million VND" - Mr. Phuong recounted.

Thanks to regular overtime, this salary helps his family temporarily stabilize spending. However, after the business changed the organization of shifts, from working 2 shifts/day to 3 shifts/day, the income of workers decreased significantly.

According to Mr. Phuong, when switching to a new shift, the overtime time is less, so the salary is only about 8-9 million VND per month. This is the main reason why he agreed to quit his job.

After leaving the factory, he returned to his locality and did freelance jobs, mainly as a construction worker. Although the jobs were quite regular, his income was still only about over 10 million VND per month, making it difficult to cover all expenses.

Financial pressure on Mr. Phuong's family is quite high. His 2 children are of school age, including 1 child who is studying and living in Ho Chi Minh City. In addition, he also has to take care of his child who is the child of his younger sister and his parents who are old and weak, no longer able to work.

Both husband and wife go to work and have to take care of grandparents, children and grandchildren. In general, one person going to work has to shoulder many people, so spending is very stressful" - Mr. Phuong confided.

Previously, when his children were young, he and his wife worked as workers in Tay Ninh for many years, sending their children back to their hometown for grandparents to take care of. However, when income decreased and parents became older, he decided to return to his hometown to live closer to his family.

My grandparents are also old, so I want to be closer to home to conveniently take care of them" - he said.

Finding a new path

Although he has returned to his hometown and is looking for a new job, Mr. Phuong said that his current income is still difficult to meet the family's spending needs. Therefore, he is considering the option of working abroad to improve his economy.

He said that he had previously intended to go to Taiwan (China) to work but has not been able to do so. Currently, after learning information from acquaintances and job service centers, he is considering registering to work in Russia.

I have also planned to work abroad for several years now. If I can go, try to work for a few years to have money to take care of my family and for my children to study" - he shared.

According to Mr. Phuong, working far away for a long time will certainly be difficult, especially when having to leave family. However, with the current economic pressure, this is a choice that he believes needs to be considered.

In case he cannot work abroad, he plans to switch to small business or freelance work in the locality to have more income.

For many workers like Mr. Phuong, when a salary level has to bear the expenses for the whole family, looking for job opportunities abroad is considered a way to improve income and create a source of accumulation for the future.