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Social distancing being implemented to control the spread of Covid-19 has greatly reduced the workforce at enterprises and seaports
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The board suggested that relevant ministries and localities allow travel for groups of personnel that work at ports and handle export and import procedures
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According to the Cat Lai Port, the number of daily employees has decreased by 50% to 250, when 500 people each day are needed to maintain port operations
Vietnam’s Ministry of Transport (MoT) has asked provincial and municipal authorities to relax travel restrictions for laborers at seaports to avoid disrupting production and supply chains amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
The MoT issued the directive after observations that the social distancing being implemented by the government to control the spread of Covid-19 has greatly reduced the workforce of enterprises and seaports, according to an August 17 report from Vietnam News Agency.
The Government Office earlier sent an official dispatch to the MoT to consider the urgent solutions that were proposed by the Private Economic Development Research Board intended to support businesses and limit disruptions in production and supply chains amid the pandemic.
According to the dispatch, the board suggested that relevant ministries and localities allow travel for groups of personnel that work at ports and handle export and import procedures.
The MoT said it agreed with the board’s proposals and suggested to the People’s Committees of provinces and cities to implement the recommendation.
Previously, transport departments in cities and provinces reported to the MoT that social distancing measures were greatly affecting the number of workers at enterprises and seaports.
For example, Cat Lai Port in Ho Chi Minh City was facing a severe shortage of employees such as port officers and forklift drivers, as many workers were located in locked-down residential areas and the city was restricting travel between pandemic-affected localities.
According to the port, the number of employees has decreased by 50% to 250 as a result, when 500 people per day are needed to maintain port operations, excluding staff of customs, shipping lines and relevant state management agencies.
The stay-at-work model that was applied to loading and unloading workers at the port has not been very effective because the port has little vacant space and many activities take place outdoors.
To deal with the shortage, the Vietnam Maritime Administration, the Seaport Associations and port enterprises submitted proposals to the authorities to allow the Cat Lai Port’s workers to go to the port if they do not reside in locked-down areas.
Photo by Kurt Cotoaga on Unsplash
