The Lao government has revealed that more than 73,000 Lao workers are currently working abroad illegally, particularly in neighboring countries, despite the government’s efforts to create domestic job opportunities for job seekers.
During the 8th General Meeting, Baikham Khattiya, Vice Minister of the Ministry of Labour and Social Welfare, highlighted that from January to September 2024, the ministry worked in collaboration with various sectors, including public and private businesses, to provide employment opportunities. As a result, 20,117 job positions were successfully filled.
The ministry has also signed agreements with partner countries to send workers abroad legally, focusing on destinations such as Korea, Japan, and Thailand.
However, despite these efforts, a total of 224,376 Lao workers remain abroad, both legally and illegally. Of these, 73,000 are working without proper documentation. This highlights a growing trend of Lao workers returning home for legal employment, as compared to June 2024, when over 203,000 Lao workers were reported as working illegally.
In mid-2024, Laos faced an intensified domestic labor shortage, driven by high inflation and low wages that were insufficient to cover living costs. This led to a significant increase in the number of Lao workers migrating abroad, with more than 415,000 people leaving the country in search of better opportunities.
To address this issue, the Ministry of Labour and Social Welfare organized a job festival in March 2024, aiming to reduce the growing labor shortage. The event sought to fill 560 positions across 56 companies, with an estimated need for 1,800 workers. This initiative attracted both domestic and international employers, as well as job seekers.
Last year, new measures were introduced to improve the management of Lao workers abroad and foreign workers in Laos. These included a financial cooperation agreement with a Korean banking institution to facilitate credit and remittances, as well as efforts to ensure that Lao workers are managed in accordance with the laws of their host countries. The management of foreign workers in Laos has also been modernized, with improvements implemented from the central to local levels.