VietNamNet Bridge - Experts have warned that millions of Vietnamese workers, especially in the electronic parts, footwear and garment industries, will become redundant because of the use of robots at factories.

Nike recently announced that it would relocate sport shoes production units back to the US on the occasion of the US President Obama’s visit to its headquarters in Beaverton in Oregon State. 

According to Portland Business Journal, in the near future, many production units at Nike will be automated. The manufacturer has even has applied for patent for an almost-automatic shoes production factory, expected to become operational in Atlanta City by 2017.

Experts have warned that millions of Vietnamese workers, especially in the electronic parts, footwear and garment industries, will become redundant because of the use of robots at factories.

On August 18, Nike signed a cooperation agreement with Apollo Global Management to complete Nike’s supply chain right in the US. Appolo Global Management will serve as the main partner in Nike’s automatic factory project. 

Meanwhile, Adidas, Nike’s inherited rival, has completed a factory run by robots – Speedfactory – in Ansbach in Germany.

The information technology (IT) is also witnessing a workforce revolution. Foxconn, the leading Chinese electronics manufacturer, has sacked 60,000 workers in the phone production line and replaced them with a robot system.

About 100 million Chinese workers are facing the risk of becoming redundant, because the labor cost in China has been increasing, which makes it cheaper to use robots than workers.

In Vietnam, analysts warned that millions of workers may become redundant because of the competition from robots. The workers are mostly in electronic parts, garment & footwear production and all of these are Vietnam’s key industries.

A report of the General Department of Customs (GDC) showed that electronics, garment and footwear exports in the first six months of the year alone accounted for 40 percent of total export turnover.

According to Nguyen Van Khanh, secretary general of Lefaso, the association of Vietnamese shoes manufacturers, automation technology would be more useful to make sport shoes with the materials from fabric and rubber. 

Meanwhile, in making leather shoes, there is some work which cannot be undertaken by robots. 

However, Khanh admitted that once the robot technology develops, the possibility of workers being replaced by robots is high.

“Footwear manufacturers now have pay high salaries to workers, from insurance and healthcare insurance to trade union fee and accommodation allowances. Therefore, if robots can replace workers, businesses would consider cutting their workforce to save money,” he said.

Diep Thanh Kiet from Lefaso also said the automation in fashion production is threatening to overthrow the competitive edges of developing countries which have low-cost labor forces in Asia.

He commented that Vietnam needs to have an automation strategy for manufacturing in general and footwear production in particular, because Vietnamese labor costs will not be cheap forever.


Mai Chi