Stories of workers celebrating Tet away from home

Lunar New Year 2026 is drawing near. While many families are eagerly shopping and returning to their hometowns for reunion, for a considerable number of disadvantaged workers, the joy of the new Spring comes hand in hand with homesickness.

Many laborers have spent five years or more celebrating Tet far from home because of financial burdens and the daily worry of making ends meet. Such hardships have forced them to set aside their dream of reunion, choosing instead to remain in rented rooms to save costs.

Celebrating Tet away from home

Tran Thi Thanh Loan (a resident of the former Phu Yen province, now Dak Lak province) has worked as a factory worker in Dong Nai for nearly ten years. During that time, she has spent seven Tet holidays away from her family. With a modest income primarily used for daily expenses and remittances to support her parents back home, her dream of reuniting with loved ones each spring has remained unfulfilled.

Member of the Provincial Party Standing Committee and Standing Vice Chairman of the Provincial Vietnam Fatherland Front Committee, Ha Anh Dung, presents gifts to worker families in difficult circumstances who are celebrating Tet away from home. Photo: Nguyen Hoa

This year, Loan planned to bring her whole family, especially her children, back to her hometown for a reunion, hoping to make up for the Tet celebrations she had missed in previous years. However, that simple wish could not come true. At the end of 2025, unexpected floods struck Dak Lak province, sweeping away much of her family’s belongings. All the modest savings she had carefully put aside were sent home to help her parents recover from the disaster. Understanding her difficult situation, trade unions at various levels in Dong Nai visited, presented gifts, and offered words of encouragement, giving her the strength to overcome hardship and welcome a Tet far from home yet filled with warmth and care.

Similarly, Nguyen Thi Binh from Thai Binh province, a garment worker at Amata Industrial Park (IP) in Long Binh ward, has also spent eight years without returning home for Tet. Watching people carrying gifts and pulling suitcases to return home, she is often overwhelmed with longing for her hometown and reunion meals with loved ones. In previous years, her Tet was confined to a rented room, marked only by hurried phone calls after shifts or small gatherings of migrant workers.

This year, attending a year-end gathering for worker families organized by the Dong Nai Provincial Labor Federation (DLF) left her both joyful and emotional. “Sitting among fellow worker families at the year-end meeting, I felt my heart warm up and clearly sensed that Tet is very near. The gathering is not only a reunion but also a great source of sharing and encouragement for migrant workers like us, easing much of the fatigue accumulated throughout the year,” Binh shared.

Such stories are not uncommon. For many migrant workers, Tet poses a difficult challenge, as travel costs rise while monthly wages are carefully stretched to cover rent, food, and their children's tuition. Tet bonuses often serve as a reserve for unexpected expenses. Not a few workers choose to stay behind and work overtime, exchanging reunion days for a more stable income after Tet. Celebrating Tet far from home is indeed sorrowful, but for workers, simply finishing a shift and opening their phones to see that their parents are still healthy is enough to feel that Tet is still there, still waiting for their return.

Trade unions stand side by side with timely support

According to a DLF report, data compiled from grassroots trade unions show that during Lunar New Year 2026, nearly 60,000 workers employed at IPs across Dong Nai will not return home due to economic constraints, work commitments, and enterprise production demands.

To care for both the material and spiritual well-being of workers, trade unions at all levels, along with authorities and businesses, have organized numerous practical activities, such as visits, gift-giving, and “Tet Reunion” programs, in localities and industrial parks with large worker populations. In addition, enterprises have ensured Tet salaries and bonuses and presented tokens of appreciation to workers after a year of dedication. Such attention has helped encourage workers to celebrate a more complete Tet, easing their homesickness.

Although celebrating Tet far from home without gathering with loved ones, many workers in Dong Nai still fully feel the joy and warmth of spring thanks to the timely care and support from authorities, trade unions, and the business community. This support has become a strong source of encouragement, allowing them to work with peace of mind and contribute actively to the province’s development.

Kpah Nhuyen, a packaging worker at Shing Mark Vina Co., Ltd. in Bau Xeo IP, has also decided to stay in Dong Nai for Tet this year. Receiving support from the trade union, she became emotional: “Honestly, my child and I had planned to stay in our rented room and make do with whatever we had. But now, with gifts and financial support from the trade union, I will buy my child a new outfit and some sweets. With the union’s care, I no longer feel alone.”

At a recent gathering of 250 worker families organized by the DLF, many workers could not hide their emotions as they felt the trade union's companionship and support during the year-end reunion season. Nguyen Quoc Bao from Nghe An province said that although he could not afford to return home this Tet, being surrounded by fellow worker families in a warm and friendly atmosphere and receiving gifts from the trade union made him feel supported and motivated to move forward confidently in the new year.

Attending the gathering and sharing joy with 250 disadvantaged worker families, Member of the Provincial Party Standing Committee and Standing Vice Chairman of the Provincial VFF Committee Ha Anh Dung urged Party committees and authorities at all levels to continue directing agencies, units and enterprises to implement practical solutions to care for workers’ material and spiritual lives, thereby helping every family celebrate the Lunar New Year in an atmosphere of prosperity and happiness.

By Nguyen Hoa – Translated by M.Nguyet, Minho