Vietnam sees rise in employment in H1
Vietnam’s labor market showed positive signs in the first half of 2025, with increases in employment and income.
THE HANOI TIMES — Vietnam’s employed population reached 51.9 million in the first half of 2025, up 1% year-on-year, driven by a 2.2% increase in urban employment to 20.1 million, according to the General Statistics Office.
Employment in rural areas rose modestly by 0.3% to 31.8 million.
Students majoring in Electrical - Electronics at the Hanoi College of Electronics and Electro-refrigeratory Technics (HCEET). Photo: HCEET
Vietnam’s service sector led job growth in the first half of 2025, with employment rising 2.5% year-on-year and accounting for 40.8% of the national workforce, according to the General Statistics Office.
The industrial and construction sector followed with a 1.5% increase, representing 33.2% of the workforce. In contrast, employment in the agricultural sector declined by 1.8%, making up 26% of total employment.
The national labor force, defined as individuals aged 15 and over, expanded 1% to 53 million. Despite the increase, the labor force participation rate edged down 0.3 percentage points to 68.2%.
The share of trained workers with degrees or certificates rose by 1 percentage point year-on-year to 29%.
Underemployment among working-age individuals dropped by 0.33 percentage points to 1.7%, while the unemployment rate declined slightly to 2.2%. Urban unemployment stood at 2.4%, compared to 2.1% in rural areas.
Despite improvements, informal employment remained prevalent at 63.9%, down 1.1 percentage points from a year earlier. Informal labor accounted for 48% in urban areas (down 1.7 points) and 74% in rural areas (down 0.5 points).
The average monthly income nationwide rose 10.1% to VND8.3 million (US$317.5). Male workers earned VND9.3 million ($355.7) on average, 1.3 times more than female workers. Urban workers earned an average of VND10 million ($382.5), 1.4 times higher than their rural counterparts.
