Textile and garment firms are willing to spend VND400 billion on vaccination

If there is a shortage of vaccines, the community cannot be immune, textile firms are very stressed and have to organise production according to the method of social distance. Illustrative photo. Photo: H.Diu

Businesses are hovering between life and death

The leaders of Dap Cau Garment Joint Stock Company recently have always “gotten ants in pants". When the fourth wave of Covid-19 pandemic broke out in Bac Ninh and Bac Giang - where the factory of Dap Cau garment was located, the company immediately strengthened a series of restrictions.

However, on May 15,, this business recorded a worker whose wife is F0. The whole production team with F1 workers was given a break, tested and isolated. Three days later, that F1 case got a positive result, so the whole production team became F1. However, thanks to good pandemic prevention, after three weeks at Dap Cau garment factories, there were no more F0.

What makes business leaders have "headaches" is to follow the direction of Bac Ninh province, which requires businesses to isolate, give workers accommodation at work to prevent the spread of Covid-19.The company's employees do not accept and leave work despite the firm's efforts.

In the case that employees go to work, however, less than half of the machines can be operated due to social distancing, and there are not enough places to eat and sleep for workers. Many difficulties have caused businesses to stop production from 18 May, for factories in Thi Cau, Dap Cau and from June 2for factories in Yen Phong.

“It is true that businesses are hovering between life and death. We are negotiating with customers to extend the delivery time and customers understand, but the delay is not long. Clothing is seasonal and is a fast item, which cannot be shipped from one season to another. We had to move the order to another production place, but the situation was also out of control,” said Luong Van Thu, Chairman and General Director of Dap Cau Garment Joint Stock Company.

Le Tien Truong, Chairman of Vietnam Textile and Garment Group (Vinatex) said that in the first three waves, the group's businesses had absolutely no people infected with Covid-19. However, during the fourth outbreak, there were businesses in Bac Ninh and Da Nang with employees of F0, leading to enterprises in those places being forced to stop production and suffering significant losses.

In 2021, firms in the industry already have economic contracts, specific delivery times, and clear responsibilities attached to manufacturers. Therefore, stopping production and slow delivery, even if it is for objective factors, is still a content that needs to be negotiated carefully with the buyer to minimise damage to both sides.

"For example, when production is delayed and they have to change the transportation of goods from water to air, the garment firm will certainly lose money for that order," said Le Tien Truong.

VND400 billion for vaccination

The current situation of both social distancing and production makes garment firms difficult and inefficient. Vaccination against Covid-19 is considered to be the optimal solution for labour-intensive garment firms to produce efficiently and safely, and to fulfill the goals set in 2021.

If there is a shortage of vaccines, the community cannot be immune; businesses are stressed and have to organise production according to the method of distance, not operating at designed capacity, using less labour.

“For example, an average garment factory is designed for 1,200 workers, but when during social distancing, it can only guarantee 700-800 workers to work. Such organisation of production is not effective and is not a long-term solution for businesses. Firms can endure for 1-2 years, but cannot last longer," said Le Tien Truong.

With 150,000 employees, Vinatex is expected to have 300,000 doses of vaccines. If taking care to vaccinate the family of Vinatex employees, it is expected more than 1 million doses of vaccine will be needed. The total cost is about VND400 billion.

Vinatex does not mobilise, but considers this to be the work of each firm under Vinatex. Each business needs to take care of its own expenses for the vaccination of its employees. In case any business finds it really difficult, the group will support this expense.

Currently, Vinatex can only access vaccines according to Resolution 21/NQ-CP2021 on purchasing and using vaccines against Covid-19.

This source is allocated to the Steering Committees for Pandemic Prevention and Control in units in the outbreak areas. However, Resolution 21/NQ-CP2021 was implemented when HCM City had not become an outbreak area, so Vinatex's units in HCM City were not vaccinated. Therefore, Vinatex hopes it will be adjusted soon so that where the pandemic has just come; the steering committees on the front lines of businesses can have immediate access to vaccines.

In addition, according to Le Tien Truong, currently only people in the upper-level Steering Committee are vaccinated, the hope is to continue to deploy more to soon vaccinate the Steering Committees in more remote areas, firms, subsidiaries and affiliated factories.

“After these frontline people, deploying to the workforce in large production centres in industrial parks, there is a higher risk in isolated retail businesses; then, to firms with 2,000 employees or more; finally to firms with only a few hundred employees, such as yarn and textile firms," suggested Le Tien Truong.