Life is difficult, many years can not return home
Binh Duong province currently has 29 industrial parks, 10 industrial clusters and thousands of factories operating in residential areas with about 1.3 million workers. The majority of workers in Binh Duong are migrant workers and have to rent houses.
According to the Binh Duong Provincial Federation of Labor, through surveys by trade unions at all levels, the lives of workers are still difficult. Jobs are not yet fully guaranteed, and the average income is only about 7 - 7.5 million VND/person/month. This income is only enough to cover monthly living expenses, and savings are very small. Therefore, returning home for Tet is very difficult for many workers.
At Thong Dung Shoe Company Limited (An Phu Ward, Thuan An City), there are about 4,700 workers. This year, there are more orders and more stable jobs for workers. However, many workers whose hometowns are far away in the Central and Northern provinces still find it difficult to return home for Tet. There are cases where they have not been able to return home for many years. Among them are Ms. Nong Thi Man (born in 1988, from Tuyen Quang) and Ms. Nguyen Thi Nguyen (born in 1966, from Thanh Hoa).
Similarly, at Yazaki EDS Vietnam Co., Ltd. (Japanese investment, manufacturing automobile electrical wires), there are more than 7,000 workers. Many workers are still renting and have small children, so they cannot return home for Tet. Ms. Dinh Thi Anh (born in 1992, from Thanh Hoa, working in the production department) has not been able to return home for Tet for 2 consecutive years. "I have been working in Binh Duong for 14 years, got married and have 2 small children. Both my husband and I are workers, so life is still difficult, and we still have to rent. As workers who work far away, we all hope to return home at the end of the year. However, due to circumstances, my family has not returned home for Tet with my grandparents for 2 consecutive years. I miss my children and relatives very much, I just wish I could return home for Tet to be with my relatives" - Ms. Anh shared.
Touched when the union gave away 0 VND train tickets
Understanding the thoughts and wishes of workers far from home, over the years the Trade Union has given away tens of thousands of free train and bus tickets to bring workers far from home to celebrate Tet.
Ms. Nguyen Hoang Bao Tran - Permanent Vice President of Binh Duong Provincial Labor Federation said that this year the unit continues to organize "Union Train - Spring 2025" and give away plane and bus tickets to bring about 2,000 union members and workers back to their hometowns from Da Nang to the northern provinces and cities.
The Provincial Federation of Labor has deployed to grassroots unions to survey and award train tickets to workers who have not been able to return home for many years. Currently, the grassroots unions have completed the review and selection process to award train and plane tickets to union members.
Mr. Nguyen Minh Tien - Chairman of the Trade Union of Thong Dung Shoe Company Limited - said that the unit has found cases of workers who live far away and have not returned home for many years to organize the Trade Union to support. Currently, a list of 77 union members has been made to give free train and plane tickets.
Ms. Pham Thi Tuyet Nhung - Chairman of the Trade Union of Yazaki EDS Vietnam Co., Ltd. said that the unit has also reviewed and decided on the list of union members who will be supported to return home during Tet. There are 7 union members with difficult working conditions who will be given plane tickets to return home and 49 train tickets. The union members have been notified and the list has been made public.
Knowing that he was given a train ticket to return home, Mr. Nguyen Chi Chung (born in 1994, from Thanh Hoa province) was very excited. "It has been 3 consecutive years since my family has been able to return home for Tet. Now that the union has considered giving me a free train ticket to return home, I am very excited. This is a very meaningful gift for workers far from home like us. Thank you to the union for understanding and sharing with workers" - Mr. Chung expressed.
Similarly, Ms. Dinh Thi Anh was moved when she heard that she was given a train ticket to return home. "Due to difficulties, both husband and wife work shifts and cannot take their children to school, so one child has to be sent to the countryside for grandparents to help take care of. Being away from home, I miss my children very much, I look forward to returning home every day to reunite with my parents and children. Therefore, I was very touched and happy when I heard that I was given a train ticket to return home. Each train ticket given helps them save a small amount of money. With this money, we can buy more Tet gifts, clothes for the children and gifts for our parents. On January 25, my family will return to my hometown and after Tet, we will continue to return to Binh Duong to work" - Ms. Anh shared.
Taking care of union members staying in Binh Duong to celebrate Tet Binh Duong Provincial Labor Federation said that the unit has preliminary statistics on the number of workers far from home staying in Binh Duong during Tet this year, about 500,000 people, an increase compared to Tet 2024. This year, Binh Duong Labor Union continues to organize many meaningful activities to take care of workers. Unions at all levels have arranged about 272 billion VND to support workers in difficulty. The Labor Union also advised Binh Duong province to allocate about 50 billion VND from the budget to support 50,000 workers in difficulty staying in Binh Duong to celebrate Tet, each person will receive 1 million VND in cash. The Labor Union will go to the company and the boarding house to give meaningful gifts and support workers.
