Hiring caution grows as opportunities shrink for fresh graduates, survey finds

Hiring caution grows as opportunities shrink for fresh graduates, survey finds

A recent survey by Vieclam24h, conducted between May and June 2025 and involving nearly 3,000 businesses and employees, revealed that only 23.4 per cent of employers plan to hire fresh graduates and individuals without practical experience over the next six months. This marks the lowest hiring intention across all employment tiers.

A recent job fair in Hà Nội. — Photo thoibaonganhang.vn

 Vietnamese businesses have adopted a cautious stance on recruitment, with many scaling back opportunities for recent graduates, even as layoffs continue to ripple across various sectors.

A recent survey by Vieclam24h, conducted between May and June 2025 and involving nearly 3,000 businesses and employees, revealed that only 23.4 per cent of employers plan to hire fresh graduates and individuals without practical experience over the next six months. This marks the lowest hiring intention across all employment tiers.

This cautious hiring trend is far from coincidental. Following a period of global economic upheaval marked by trade tensions, supply chain disruptions and rising inflation, Vietnamese business sentiment has been heavily shaped by an increasingly unpredictable environment.

For many companies, hiring young and inexperienced workers entails higher training costs and greater turnover risks, a gamble few are willing to take amid unstable business performance. 

As a result, employers continue to prioritise recruitment for official positions, specialised roles and strategic departments, while fresh talent remains in a holding pattern, awaiting opportunities that may not come soon.

This trend is not unique to Việt Nam. In many advanced economies, including Japan, the UK and the US, employers are also scaling back on hiring young workers, opting instead for experienced talent to meet immediate job demands.

However, Việt Nam’s labour market stands apart due to its youthful workforce structure. With a high proportion of young people entering the job market, the ongoing mismatch between employer expectations and candidate experience is likely to create deeper and more prolonged pressure, potentially increasing local unemployment among recent graduates. 

Meanwhile, a wave of layoffs continues to hit Việt Nam's labour market, mirroring global trends and raising fresh concerns about employment stability.

According to data from Vieclam24h, more than 2,500 positions were eliminated in banking in the first half of the year, with retail, manufacturing, real estate and IT sectors all facing similar downsizing pressures.

Up to 62.3 per cent of those who lost their jobs in Việt Nam were entry-level workers, a segment typically reserved for beginners with little or no prior experience. 

In contrast, major economies tend to see lower job loss rates in this group, thanks to robust vocational training systems closely tied to business needs, enabling quicker reintegration into the workforce.

Experts said Việt Nam's situation highlights a longstanding issue: the disconnect between education and labour market requirements. While not new, this mismatch has become increasingly visible amid current economic pressures. 

Bizhub