HCM City has major shortage of qualified jewellers, goldsmiths
A severe shortage of jewellers exists in gold jewelry manufacturing and sales in HCM City, according to Nguyen Van Dung, director of the Saigon Jewelry Association.
Some 5,000 enterprises operating in the field annually need from 5,000 to 10,000 metalworkers, but the city's only jewelry training centre can provide 300 to 500 metalworkers a year.
The domestic price of gold has fluctuated widely and the purchasing power of gold has increased sharply since the beginning of the year, pushing up the manufacturing and trading of gold jewelry, he added.
An owner of Minh Hung gold jewelry store in Tan Binh District said that both large as well as small – and medium-d enterprises in the field were facing a shortage of qualified workers.
He said his store needed to employ 20 to 40 workers but students at the centre had already signed contracts with other enterprises.
"Only a few workers from other provinces have been employed through the introduction of some of my friends," he added.
"The centre fails to satisfy recruitment demand of enterprises such as Ben Thanh Jewelry Company and Phu Nhuan Jewelry Company because most students are assured of getting a job after they graduate or working for their family-owned facilities," Tran Ngoc Tri, Deputy Director of the centre, said.
Although the centre enrolls candidates for each course, only 100 students are taking the course now, Tri added.
He attributed the shortage of metalmakers to the lack of interest of students who think the job is low-income and harmful to health due to mercury inhalation.
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