Flower village enters peak season near Tet
These days, Cho Lach flower village is entering an urgent production rhythm. In the ornamental gardens, workers continuously prune, plant buds, and make flowers to keep up with the delivery schedule for Tet.
Ms. Bui Thi Thuy Lieu in Cho Lach commune, who has been attached to the profession for more than 10 years, said that flower making is not only busy during Tet. From planting, caring for to posing, it takes place all year round, rarely having free time.
According to Ms. Lieu, the biggest pressure falls around 1 to 1.5 months before Tet. This is the decisive stage for the quality of flowers, requiring meticulousness and high concentration from workers.
Steps such as pruning leaves, shape adjustment, making flowers for chrysanthemums and many types of crops must be carried out continuously. Just being slow, flowers blooming at the wrong time will greatly affect selling prices.
The busy work forces many workers to work almost full-time. Many people have to work shifts, rotating to support many different gardens to be ready for sale.
At the age of over 60, Mrs. Sau Tham still regularly goes to the garden every day. For her, taking care of flowers is not only to earn extra income but also to help her feel comfortable and improve her old age health.
The remuneration of about 25,000 VND per hour is considered appropriate by Ms. Tham. This amount of money helps her cover living expenses, contributing to improving meals for the family in the days leading up to Tet.
According to Ms. Tham, elderly workers are still trusted by garden owners thanks to their ingenuity and patience. The experience accumulated over many years helps them handle ornamental flowers accurately and limit risks.
Overwork, labor shortage
Despite the increasing demand for labor, local human resources are becoming increasingly scarce. Many garden owners said they had to contact and reserve workplaces a few months before Tet.
Ms. Nguyen Thi Thiem, owner of a flower and ornamental plant garden in Cho Lach commune, said that Tet is always the most stressful time. There is a lot of work but it is not easy to find enough people to work as needed.
Currently, Ms. Thiem's garden maintains about 10 regular workers. However, in the stage of packaging and transporting flowers, this number has not yet met the workload arising.
Although scheduled early, many workers still have to work overtime continuously. After completing work at one garden, they quickly move to another garden to keep up with the general schedule.
Income ranging from 250,000 to 400,000 VND per day is considered quite high compared to rural workers. However, due to the simultaneous demand, human resource coordination faces many difficulties.
Many gardeners accept paying higher salaries or subsidizing meals to retain skilled workers. Because just a shortage of people can affect the progress of flower care.
Talking to reporters, Mr. Tran Huu Nghi - Vice Chairman of Cho Lach Commune People's Committee - said that ornamental flowers are the spearhead economy of the locality. The whole commune currently has about 3,000 households producing seedlings and ornamental flowers.
A large workforce helps people have stable jobs right in their hometown. About 98% of workers are taught the craft, trained through many generations, creating a great advantage for craft villages.
According to Mr. Nghi, the locality is orienting the development of ornamental flowers associated with ecotourism and vocational training. Thereby, attracting young workers to return, solving the problem of labor shortage during peak season.
Despite the difficulties ahead, the vitality of Cho Lach flower village is still persistent. Carriages carrying Tet flowers to all regions are the fruit of the hard work of the people here.
