Struggling to find a job
Having worked as a freelance driver for many years, Mr. Nguyen Van Doan (resident in Can Tho City) gradually realized the precariousness of his job when he entered the age of nearly 40. His job is mainly transporting goods for private car owners, when there is goods, he drives, and after the trip, he returns home to wait for work.
If there are goods, people call, then we run, if there are no goods, then we quit. The work is only verbal agreement, there is no contract" - Mr. Doan said.
In addition to driving trucks, he also takes advantage of doing many other jobs to increase his income, such as driving boats to transport rice in the fields during the harvest season. These jobs help him have more income but also are not without hardship.
Driving a boat sometimes requires staying up all night to watch the water and the fields. And driving a truck sometimes requires driving at night" - he shared.
According to Mr. Doan, income from these jobs is unstable. In busy months, he can earn about 15 million VND, but there are also months with few trips, income is only a few million VND, so he has to spend very sparingly.
Because he works freelance, he does not have insurance or stable regimes. When he entered the age of nearly 40, he thought many times about finding a fixed job, but applying to businesses is not easy, from experience requirements, a constrained working environment to income that is not really suitable.
Besides, most industrial parks are far from his house. If he goes to work, he has to rent a room, incur additional living expenses, while the salary is not too high.
In many places, the salary is only about 8-9 million VND per month. If I have to rent a room, I won't have much savings" - he said.
Accept seasonal work
Mr. Doan's story is also the situation that Ms. Ma Thi Thuy Ngan (born in 1983) is going through.
Previously, Ms. Ngan worked as a worker at an electronics company in Ho Chi Minh City for nearly 3 years. If she worked overtime regularly, her income would be about 10-11 million VND per month, enough to cover living expenses and send a portion back to her hometown to take care of her family.
However, after the epidemic period and when the business encountered difficulties and personnel cuts, Ms. Ngan could no longer maintain a stable job.
Currently, she can only do seasonal labor jobs, does not have long-term contracts and is not socially insured.
Each month, her rent and personal living expenses alone are about 2-3 million VND. Besides, she also has to send money back to her hometown to raise two children of school age.
The older I get, the more expensive it becomes. Later I also have to go to university, so I think it's also stressful. Doing the current job, I can hardly accumulate money" - she shared.
According to Ms. Ngan, at the age of over 40, finding a stable job at businesses is increasingly difficult. Many companies prioritize recruiting young workers, narrowing the opportunities for older people like her.
Now many places recruit workers under 40 years old, only from 18-35 years old. I am older, so it is also difficult to find a job" - she said.
Assessing the labor supply and demand situation in March 2026, the Can Tho City Employment Service Center summarized: In general, the market still has a disparity when businesses lack unskilled labor and highly skilled labor in some traditional fields. It is forecasted that businesses will continue to recruit labor while labor sources are scarce.
The reason is the fierce competition for local labor resources with neighboring regions, although wages have improved, the disparity in total income and promotion opportunities in major economic centers still causes a large number of young workers to go to work in other localities.
