The Mekong Development Research Institute (MDRI), in collaboration with the World Bank, is implementing the study “In Her Shoes” (Vietnamese name: “Nhu cầu kỹ năng nghề của nữ công nhân khu công nghiệp”). The research seeks to better understand the aspirations, barriers, and career development needs of women working in industrial parks, export processing zones, and high-tech parks in Vietnam. The project aims to identify the challenges faced by female low-skilled workers and propose appropriate forms of support that enable them to benefit from new policies such as the Lifelong Learning Law, thereby improving their quality of life, employment outcomes, and long-term stability both during and after their time working in industrial zones.
Survey Methodology and Scope
The project consists of two major data-collection components:
- Field Survey:
A sample of over 2,000 workers, primarily women, along with a smaller group of men, was selected across three key locations: Ho Chi Minh City, Thai Nguyen, and Can Tho. The survey targets workers employed in manufacturing enterprises within industrial parks, excluding office staff with skills easily transferable to other sectors. The field survey aims to generate in-depth insights into career trajectories, barriers, and support needs of women currently employed in industrial parks. - Phone Survey:
Conducted with approximately 400 women and 200 men who previously worked in industrial parks but have since left. This survey explores their career paths, reasons for leaving the industrial parks, experiences with job transitions, personal financial investment decisions, needs and difficulties after exiting employment in industrial parks, and the types of training and support required to facilitate smoother career transitions.
Key Responsibilities
- Designing the sampling approach for the field survey across the three provinces/cities.
- Developing and implementing the entire survey process, including questionnaire design, enumerator training, and data collection.
- Securing necessary approvals and coordinating with local authorities to ensure legal compliance during survey implementation.
- Monitoring fieldwork quality to ensure data accuracy and completeness.
- Strictly adhering to World Bank data-protection and privacy standards to safeguard respondents’ personal information.
- Producing detailed documentation of the survey process and contributing to all stages of the overall research.
Photo source: https://moit.gov.vn/tin-tuc/dia-phuong/tp-hcm-tren-230.000-cong-nhan-da-tro-lai-lam-viec.html
