After nearly 10 years of leaving Lao Cai to work as a worker in Bac Thang Long Industrial Park, Ms. Hoang Thi Nhien has never worried about food like in recent days. Information about the continuous appearance of African swine fever makes her hesitant every time she buys food at the market. To reassure her, she asked her parents and grandparents in her hometown to send food down.
The family's small refrigerator is always full of fried chicken, fish, and vegetables. "Before, I often bought food at the toad market and temporary market in residential areas. Now that there is swine fever in many places, I have switched to buying chickens and fish. Last month, my parents sent meals down twice, enough for me and my wife to eat for a month, both safe and cost-effective" - Ms. Nhien said.
But her worries about making a living are not limited to her daily meals. The couple also have to cover the expenses for food, education for their two children and helping their parents in the countryside. "If the company maintains regular overtime, we have 3-4 million VND left to reserve for rooms when there are unexpected incidents. There is no need to work overtime but the price keeps climbing, making it difficult for workers like me to stay she confided.
Ms. Bui Thi Khanh, from Phu Tho, also shared the same concern when the price of electricity for boarding houses increased to 3,500 VND/kWh, causing the bill this month to increase by 400,000 VND. "When the water price increases, I hear that the toad market and temporary market may be eliminated, I am even more worried that food prices at stores and supermarkets will be pushed up" - Ms. Khanh shared.
In the context of escalating prices, the risk of losing affordable points of sale and epidemics affecting food supply, workers' worries are piling up. With income largely dependent on overtime, any fluctuations in living expenses become a major pressure, making urban stay more fragile than ever for many workers.
