Workers and their families take a train to their hometowns in the northern region to celebrate the traditional Tết holiday on the morning of January 20. —VNA/VNS Photo Thanh Vũ

HCM CITY — Moving to HCM City to work at PouYuen Vietnam Co. Ltd. in Bình Tân District, Nguyễn Thị Thanh Tâm from Nghệ An Province has not been able to return to her hometown to celebrate Tết (Lunar New Year) holiday for many years.

This year Tâm’s family of four can enjoy a Tết celebration at home with free train tickets given by the Việt Nam General Confederation of Labour.

On the morning of January 20, her family took a train from Sài Gòn Station in District 3 to Nghệ An Province for the Tết holiday.

“At 3 am, my family got up to prepare and arrived at the station early in the morning," Tâm said, holding hands with her two daughters, who are 13 years old and seven years old.

“When my parents heard that my family would return home to celebrate Tết, they were very happy. It has been ten years since I returned home for Tết,” she said.

“Thanks to the support of the trade union, I saved more than VNĐ10 million (US$400),” she added.

Her family is among 175 families of workers in difficult circumstances who have not returned home to celebrate Tết with their families for many years receiving train tickets to return home for Tết under the programme “Union Train-Spring 2025”.

Arriving at the train station early in the morning on January 20, many families received New Year greetings and gifts from leaders of the Labour Federation.

The “Union Train-Spring 2025” programme with a cost of nearly VNĐ2 billion ($79,500) gave out round-trip train tickets to 175 workers and 320 relatives including fathers, mothers, fathers-in-law, mothers-in-law, spouses and children to return to their hometowns to celebrate Tết from January 18 to 28 and back to HCM City from February 1 to 9.

Trần Đoàn Trung, deputy chairman of the HCM City Labour Federation, said that these trains bring migrant workers to reunite with their loved ones and enjoy happy Tết celebrations.

In the city, there are many workers in difficult financial conditions who can not return home to celebrate Tết with their families, Trung said.

On the morning of January 23, the municipal Trade Union Social Work Centre organised the "Chuyến xe mùa Xuân 2025" (Spring Bus 2025) programme, driving nearly 130 union members and other workers back to their hometowns in the central provinces to celebrate Tết with their families.

The trade unions at all levels in the city have carried out the annual programme “Tấm vé nghĩa tình” (The ticket of love), giving out more than 45,000 train, bus and air tickets worth more than VNĐ26 billion ($1.03 million).

A trade union official in HCM City sees workers off on the bus to their hometowns to celebrate the traditional Tết holiday on the morning of January 23. — VNA/VNS Photo Thanh Vũ

Caring for 500,000 workers

The HCM City Labour Federation and trade unions at all levels will earmark around VNĐ500 billion ($19.8 million) to present gifts and organise various programmes to ensure more than 500,000 members and other workers enjoy a happy Tết holiday.

The “Ngày hội công nhân – Phiên chợ nghĩa tình” programme (Workers’ fair – Market of love) features nearly 70 businesses with nearly 100 booths selling essential goods and household products such as clothing, food, medicine, cosmetics, and confectionery with discounts of 10-30 per cent.

The fair, held by the federation from January 16 to 23, distributed vouchers worth VNĐ1 million ($40) each to 9,500 union members to shop at the fair at preferential prices.

The federation presented a total of 300 gifts worth VNĐ500,000 ($20) each to workers who had their working hours reduced, their labour contracts suspended, or were on unpaid leave due to the reduction of orders during the event.

Workers enjoy shopping at the “Ngày hội công nhân – Phiên chợ nghĩa tình” (Workers’ Fair – Market of Love) programme on January 16. —VNA/VNS Photo Thanh Vũ

As many as 96 houses were repaired and handed over from January 10-19 to help elderly and disadvantaged workers have a spacious house to celebrate Tết under the “Mái ấm công đoàn” (Union shelters) programme.

Huỳnh Thị Ánh Nguyệt could not hide her joy as her dilapidated house was repaired with the support of the federation's programme.

Leaders of the HCM City Labour Federation hand over “Mái ấm công đoàn” (Union shelters) to disadvantaged workers in Bình Tân District on January 19. —VNA/VNS Photo Thanh Vũ

On the evening of January 17, the federation organised the “Tết sum vầy - Xuân đoàn kết” (Happy Tết - Solidarity Spring) at the Sài Gòn Zoo and Botanical Gardens, bringing together 300 families of union members who cannot return home for Tết.

They enjoyed special art performances and lion dances, and had a year-end party.

The nine-day Tết break begins on January 25. —VNS