This is a groundbreaking and humane proposal, reflecting deep concern for the lives of workers in the context of economic fluctuations and many challenges. Although the number of workers forced to quit or have their work suspended has decreased compared to the same period last year, the number of workers receiving unemployment benefits is still high. According to a report by the Vietnam Social Security, in the first 6 months of 2024, nearly 450,000 people nationwide received unemployment benefits.
It is noteworthy that the continuous increase in prices has caused the current unemployment benefit, averaging about 3 million VND/person/month, to only cover about 30% of living expenses, causing great difficulties for workers and their families.
Losing a job not only means losing your main source of income but also losing financial security, increasing the pressure to find a new job in a short time. In such a situation, if you only receive about 3 million VND/month, it will be difficult for workers to ensure a minimum living, not to mention reintegrating into the labor market.
Therefore, raising the subsidy level to 75% is completely reasonable and necessary, helping workers have more time and resources to overcome difficulties and find new jobs without having to worry too much about finances.
In particular, increasing the subsidy level also contributes to retaining them in the social security system. Workers will feel that their rights are better protected, increase their trust in the insurance system and be willing to participate in unemployment insurance in the future.
However, this proposal also raises concerns about the safety of the Unemployment Insurance Fund and the situation of many employees taking advantage of the policy for personal gain.
This is a problem that has been occurring with workers who, when they have new jobs, deliberately conceal and do not declare to employment service centers in order to receive both salary and unemployment benefits. According to Vietnam Social Security, in recent years, there have been an average of 20,000 cases of false declarations each year. Therefore, on the one hand, the wishes of workers, especially vulnerable workers who are receiving unemployment benefits of only about 3 million VND per month, need to be listened to and supported by law-drafting agencies.
On the other hand, the authorities also need to have strong solutions to effectively prevent the abuse and exploitation of unemployment insurance policies. Only then can we ensure fairness and transparency, while not affecting the balance of revenue and expenditure of the fund!
