VietNamNet Bridge – Many industrial zone employees in HCM City have to work extra hours to fund their children’s studies, while others send their children to rural schools to cut down expenditures.

At 4 pm, a taxi motorbike driver was seen carrying three children on the same motorbike to a small house. The three children were the students at the Binh Chieu Primary School in Thu Duc District in HCM City, while the small house was where a school’s teacher lived.

The students of Binh Chieu Primary School finish school hours at 4 pm. However, they cannot go home at this time, because their parents finish their shift at 5 pm.

Le Ha Mau Men, a teacher at the school, also has to work after school hours: she takes several students to her house, feeds them and takes care of them until their parents pick them up.

Men said the parents of most of her students work at factories in industrial zones. As they usually have to work extra hours, they don’t have time to take care of their children.

At Men’s house, the students have meals, take naps and review lessons while waiting for their parents.

Many other teachers have to work as babysitters because they feel they need to help students’ parents, who are too busy at work.

Le Van An, 35, from Vinh Long Province, said he always have to leave his two children with Men until he finishes his shift and returns home.

An said he and his wife who both work in Binh Chieu Industrial Zone have to struggle to send their children to school in HCM City.

“Our total income is about VND10 million. Meanwhile, the meals, medicine, room rent and children’s study cost VND8 million,” An said.

“We usually have to work extra hours to get extra income. We don’t have much time to spend with our children,” he said.

Nguyen Van Phat, a worker at the Linh Trung Export Processing Zone, also complained that he cannot decide what he needs to do.

“If I do not have extra work, I will not earn enough money to feed my family’s basic needs. But if I do, I will have to leave my child alone at home,” he said. His son is now a first grader.

Meanwhile, Le Thi Hien, a worker of the Linh Trung 2 Export Processing Zone, and her husband decided to leave their child with the grandparents in home village, because they cannot afford tuition to send the child to a nursery school in the city.

“We have to work additional shifts, while no one can help take care of my child,” she explained. “I think it would be better to leave him with the grandparents. We would be able to see him only twice a year.”

VTC