Last year was the fourth consecutive year the number of labourers working abroad exceeds 100,000, Nam said.

Việt Nam has averaged 87,500 labourers working abroad every year during the period 2006 – 2016, an increase of nearly 4.2 per cent each year, according to Ministry of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs.

In 2016, 126,000 Vietnamese labourers went to other countries to work, an increase of 8.9 per cent compared to 2015.

Japan is the most attractive market this year because it will allow Vietnamese labourers to return to work for a second time in several fields. Their salary will be raised by US$0.22 to US$0.25. Vietnamese labourers will be allowed to prolong their working time to five years.

This year, Japan will need more high-skilled labourers, such as engineers and technicians, than manual ones.

Currently, 500,000 Vietnamese labourers are working in countries and territories,  including Japan, South Korea, Malaysia, and Taiwan.

Deputy Minister of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs Doãn Mậu Diệp told Việt Nam Government Portal that  it will seek to improve the quality of sending labourers to work overseas. It, for instance, will set up strict regulations in this sector.

The ministry has instructed the department to carry out the registration of online contracts since January 1 last year.
Srs. VNA