Living costs increase
Talking to a reporter from Lao Dong Newspaper, Ms. Kieu Thi Kim Ngan, an employee of Greentech Headgear Co., Ltd. (located in Chau Duc Industrial Park, Nghia Thanh commune, Ho Chi Minh City), said that after Ba Ria - Vung Tau province merged into Ho Chi Minh City, living costs in the locality also increased. For example, rice, meat, vegetables, cooking oil, sugar, electricity, water bills... all increased, while the company's regional minimum wage remained unchanged in sub-zone II, affecting the income and lives of workers.
Mr. Nguyen Nhat Binh - Chairman of the grassroots trade union of Greentech Headgear Co., Ltd. - shared that the urbanization rate in the locality is very fast, so many monthly living expenses also increase. According to feedback from workers, rent increased from 1 million VND to 1.2 million VND/month; childcare fees increased from 2 million VND to 2.2 million VND/child/month; daily living expenses increased from 200,000 VND to 250,000 VND/day for each worker's family. "Although the company does a good job of paying salaries, the regional minimum wage has not changed, so it partly affects the income and psychology of workers. Therefore, adjusting to increase the minimum wage zoning applied to businesses in Nghia Thanh commune is the best solution" - Mr. Binh said.
Proposal to increase the minimum wage from region II to region I with 14 communes and wards
Recently, the Ho Chi Minh City Labor Federation sent a document to the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Home Affairs proposing to adjust the minimum wage zoning from region II to region I for 14 communes and wards and from region III to region II for 10 communes of Ho Chi Minh City. According to Mr. Le Van Hoa - Vice Chairman of the Ho Chi Minh City Labor Federation - the reason for proposing to adjust the minimum wage zoning from region II to region I for 14 communes and wards is that these localities have rapid urbanization, directly affected by the large-scale Chau Duc Industrial Park, strongly attracting businesses and labor. Some communes in Ho Chi Minh City (formerly) in fact have had living standards, living costs and labor markets that have approached or been higher than region I. Or like the group of localities Long Hai, Long Dien, Ba Ria, Long Huong, Tam Long with urban nature, many areas are administrative centers, residential centers, strongly developed infrastructure, with high living price increases. Therefore, maintaining the minimum wage zoning of region II in these localities is no longer
Regarding the proposal to adjust the minimum wage zoning from region III to region II with 10 communes, Mr. Hoa said that these are adjacent areas or directly linked to areas proposed to increase the regional minimum wage. If not adjusted, there will be a gap between adjacent areas, leading to the emergence of a "low wage zone", which is not suitable for reality and not beneficial to the stability of the labor market. The Ho Chi Minh City Labor Federation proposed that the Department of Home Affairs advise the Standing Committee of the Ho Chi Minh City People's Committee to pay attention to the policy for the above proposal; at the same time, direct relevant departments and branches to review and complete dossiers to submit to competent authorities for consideration and decision. "The Ho Chi Minh City Labor Federation determines that the proposal to adjust the wage zoning is not only aimed at ensuring the legitimate and lawful rights and interests of workers, but also contributing to stabilizing labor relations, maintaining social security and improving the city's investment attraction capacity in the new period" - Mr. Hoa emphasized.
