Workers’ Housing Crisis in the Industrial Parks

Rental house for workers of Formosa Company

    In Dong Nai, most employees come from other provinces without stable accommodations. On average, they have to spend VND 100, 000 to VND 200,000 per month for rent, electricity and water cost (US$ 6-12). As usual, 2 to 3 laborers stay together in a rental room of about 10 sq. m. It can be said that the increase of industrialized parks exceeding development of infrastructure and cultural institution caused tens of thousands of workers to live in the unsettled rental houses. As a result, material and spiritual life of workers is worsening, which means they may not be strong enough to conduct their work efficiently.

    Ms. Nguyen Thi Thu, for instance, a migration worker in AMATA Industrial Park with monthly wage of VND one million (US$ 62), must share room with three other workers to reduce rent cost. Just like Ms. Thu, Ms. Ha Thi Giang from Ninh Binh province said: “I moved here three years ago, have had to change rental house four times for many reasons. Now I am sharing with two others in a room, which is so tight and wet. I am probably seeking for a new rental house”

    In that situation, the Construction Department has been appealing the employment business for building rental house for workers. Due to that, 92,800 sq. m of house has been built, which serve over 6,399 rooms meanwhile tens thousands of workers are still in need of house. In estimation, the industrial parks will attract 398,000 workers by 2010. Certain districts such as Bien Hoa city, Nhon Trach, Long Thanh, Trang Bom and so on are encouraged to stimulate houses for sale or rent. The most serious problem is capital mobilization as majority of investors consider the project the low profit deal with a great amount of capital investment. Besides, the raised price of major input materials causes the price of each apartment up. Therefore, the project may be hard to be fulfilled.

The provincial people’s committee starts a poll for the housing development project

    Currently The provincial people’s committee is implementing housing development program in the 2006-2010 period and orientation to the year 2020, the project of housing development fund in the 2006-2010 period, orientation to the year 2020. The project is being conducted in Nhon Trach district and Bien Hoa city as models. The housing project is targeted to provide 25 % in workers in concentration, processing, hi-tech industrial zones with standard social houses by 2010. The rest of 85% will be filled by local rental house in accordance with the socialized policies of the State and committee. The project in details will offer 4,511 apartments in the total floor area of 202,984 sq. km with an investment package reaching about VND 710 billion (US$ 44 million). For civil servants and officials, the social housing project models to supply  1000 people with 500 apartments (including 400 apartments in Bien Hoa city and ten in Nhon Trach district) divided into 10 building blocks on the area of 202,984 sq. m. The project is also set a general target by 2020 that can meet cadres’ and officials’ demand on housing. For workers in the concentration industrial parks, 40% of them will be arranged in proper houses.

    Arrangement of worker house partially helps to achieve sustainability and growth in production and business. In large scale Dong Nai province has continued innovate mechanism and formality on order to encourage enterprises to participate in the project so that human source as well as social economic development are stabilized.