Tears in a 16 m2 room
As a reporter based in Da Nang, I have passed through many worker dormitories and witnessed many sad and happy stories. But the memory of a room of less than 16 square meters in a workers' housing area in Hoa Cam Industrial Park (Da Nang City), where I met Ms. Vo Thi My Le (worker at Foster Da Nang Electronics Co., Ltd.) on an April day in 2024, is still intact.
At that time, Ms. Le had just finished maternity leave. The face of the young mother was markish, her smile awkward and she could not hide her fatigue. In a cramped room with only a bed and a few household items, there is the image of a young mother holding her 6-month-old baby in a clutch, struggling with goiter and asthma.
Ms. Le is the main pillar, but the salary of workers of nearly 6 million VND/month is no different from "salt abandoned". Her husband, Mr. Nguyen Dang Binh, works as a water painter, and his job is unstable during the rainy season. The burden fell on her shoulders when her two children grew up, one 11 years old, the other 6 years old, and had to be sent back to their hometown to their grandparents, both over 70 years old in Que Son district (formerly Quang Nam province), now Da Nang city, for care. Ironically, her mother-in-law also underwent expensive heart surgery and could not do anything because of her poor health.
"The time I discovered the key disease was when I was pregnant, my father had a traffic accident and was paralyzed in both legs, and my mother-in-law had to have heart surgery. There are times when I want to cry but I don't know how to cry...", Ms. Le confided choking up. The tragedy fell on a small family. After working for a day, her child was sick and she had to take a day off. The vicious cycle of illness, debt and deprivation surrounds the young mother.
After the article "LD 24036: Workers' mother raising 3 young children and treating old butterflies in Da Nang" was published, the fragrant hearts of readers of Lao Dong Newspaper have come to the site. On June 19, 2024, I returned to that room.
This time, on behalf of the Golden Heart Social Charity Fund, I personally gave her 7,925,000 VND. Her hands trembled when receiving the gift. "I use this money to pay off the milk loans from the sisters, and the rest to take care of my two young children in the countryside," she said in tears. Newspapers have become a bridge, bringing love to the most needed place.
Fear of losing a job by a female worker from Co Tu
Not long after, in November 2024, I encountered another concern, which was the loneliness and fear of Ms. ALang Thi Vit, a Co Tu ethnic woman from the mountainous district of Dong Giang to Da Nang to work as a worker. Her life is a series of days struggling to make a living, to the point that "there are Tet months when I dare not return to my hometown".
The old lady knocked on the door again when she discovered she had breast cancer. The pain caused her to be unable to work. The physical pain had not yet subsided, the fear had come: "If I quit my job, I would not have money to live on, but if I treated him for so long, I would be afraid that the company would let me take a day off". For her, losing her job means losing everything.
The article "World 24083: Co Tu female worker has cancer, afraid of losing her job in Da Nang" told her story. Immediately afterwards, a small support package from readers was delivered. More importantly, her story has been known, giving her more strength to fight the disease.
The fulcrum of workers
In the old Quang Nam land (now Da Nang City), the fire of the Golden Heart was also strongly lit by my colleagues. The serious explosion at the SGI Vina Factory in Chu Lai at noon on May 22, 2025 is an unforgettable proof.
My colleague, reporter Hoang Bin, who was always concerned about workers' lives, once shared: "When I received the news of the explosion, I had only one thought: I had to go there right away. Workers are panicking, they need our presence not only to report, but to know that they are not forgotten in the disaster.
With that spirit, reporter Hoang Bin immediately arrived at Quang Nam Central General Hospital (now in Nui Thanh commune, Da Nang city) with representatives of the Quang Nam Provincial Labor Federation (now Da Nang City Labor Federation). The images of 12 workers, some with severe burns, some in panic, urged him and the organizations to act faster.
Just one day later, representatives of the Golden Heart Social and Cultural Fund were present. 36 million VND from the Fund and 24 million VND from the Provincial Labor Federation were given directly to workers and their families. Mr. Nguyen Van Hung, a worker being treated, emotionally said: "The help at this time is a great source of encouragement. Not only money, but a warm heart in the midst of trouble".
The timely presence of reporter Hoang Bin, of Lao Dong Newspaper and the Trade Union organization, affirmed a strong message: Workers are never left behind. The newspaper not only reported on the explosion, but also directly participated in the support process, turning sympathy into practical action.
Looking back on the journey of the past year, in those darkest moments, an article, a news report became a lifebuoy, and a newspaper became a fulcrum. The journey of Lao Dong Newspaper and the Golden Heart Social Charity Fund is a vivid testament to the mission: Extending arms, rekindling hope from a seemingly lost place.
Ms. Le, Ms. Vit, 12 workers in Chu Lai, and thousands of other lives that Lao Dong Newspaper and the Golden Heart Fund have accompanied, they are not numbers in a report. They are human fates, stories filled with tears but also filled with determination.
A journalist's job is not just to record and reflect. For us who work at Lao Dong Newspaper, it is still a mission. The mission of listening to the voice of workers, becoming a loving bridge, and most importantly, becoming a solid " supported" when they need it most.
Our journey continues, because as long as there are still drops of sweat, difficulties and hardships on the way to making a living for workers, Lao Dong Newspaper and the Golden Heart Social and Cultural Fund will still be present, to light up the flickers of hope, even the smallest, from the place that seems to have died.
