IT workers surplus to plans for many companies

Many IT employees are being laid off or forced to quit and struggling to find new jobs due to a decline in demand due to the economic downturn.

After a payment project was unexpectedly canceled in July as the company, a big tech brand in HCMC, no longer had the cash to keep it running, IT manager Quang Vu had no choice but to start looking for a new job, just many of his peers in the industry.

“Many people I know in e-commerce, e-wallet and delivery companies are being affected by a wave of restructuring,” he said, adding that the layoffs are often not publicly announced.

Dinh Ngo, who works at an IT job, said his German employer has stopped looking to hire for certain positions and is not extending contracts with people in those jobs.

“Projects that are not profitable will be suspended.”

A recent report by recruitment platform VietnamWorks said most companies have reduced their recruitment budget for IT employees this year.

It surveyed non-tech companies that need IT staff and tech and IT businesses.

It said only 61.3% of employees in tech companies believe they have stable jobs.

At non-tech companies, 21.6% of IT workers have quit this year.

Around 22.2% of companies in HCMC have reduced IT staff recruitment and 14.7% in Hanoi have reduced their salaries and bonuses.

IT is among the three sectors with the biggest drop in recruitment in the last three years — at 23% — according to a report by consulting firms Talentnet and Mercer.

Industry insiders attributed this to the impact of global economic challenges.

Cai Dang Son, director of products and engineering at recruitment company Navigos Group, said businesses are focused on coping with the current difficulties.

The biggest decline in hiring is seen at e-commerce and ride-hailing companies.

Investment in Vietnamese tech startups dropped by 82% to US$66 million in the first half of this year.

Tung Lam, a former product manager who has been jobless for six months, said “Compared to before Covid-19, the number and diversity of jobs have plummeted.”

The VietnamWorks report also pointed out that more than 25% of IT staff have difficulty finding jobs, with new graduates all but ignored.