On a late June morning in 2026, Nguyen Thi Ngoc Linh, a dedicated civil servant in An Lac Ward, welcomed numerous citizens inquiring about social protection policy procedures. Spotting neighborhood leaders coming up to submit lists for longevity celebrations, she thoughtfully guided them to provide the additional citizen ID numbers of the policy beneficiaries to activate the procedure.
For Ms. Linh, her deep roots in the community proved invaluable. She explained that prior to May 31, she was a part-time worker at the An Lac Ward Socio-Cultural Division, directly in charge of social protection policies with nearly a decade of hands-on experience in this field.
When the HCMC Party Committee issued a directive to formally recruit part-time workers as official civil servants, she confidently participated in the strict assessment and was successfully accepted, allowing her to continue her local duties.
With her brand-new role, Ms. Linh deliberately allocates more time to visit the grassroots level to inquire about and grasp the heartfelt aspirations of the elderly, vulnerable groups, and policy-beneficiary families, thereby executing advisory work that aligns much more closely with stark reality.
The An Lac Ward People’s Committee stated that in strict compliance with HCMC’s guidelines, the ward has officially recruited three part-time workers into civil servant positions and applied the issued policy for 34 others. Additionally, the ward is currently executing standard procedures to sign specialized position contracts for seven part-time workers stationed right in the ward, strictly adhering to the Government’s Decree No. 173/2025/ND-CP.
Besides hiring them as civil servants, various wards and communes have also brought on numerous part-time workers as official public employees.
Over in Binh Tri Dong Ward, Nguyen The Vinh was recently accepted as a public employee at the ward’s Public Service Center, where he was specifically assigned to handle market management operations. Since the job is entirely novel, Mr. Vinh spends ample time eagerly learning and cultivating supplementary knowledge to adequately meet the demanding work requirements.
For Head Duong Thanh Hau of the Socio-Cultural Division in Binh Tri Dong Ward, this transition is a massive win. He revealed that the ward has actively recruited seven part-time workers as civil servants and 11 others as public employees. These are all dedicated individuals who have spent years intimately tied to the grassroots level and deeply understand the local terrain, so they can adapt to their new tasks with remarkable speed.
Local leaders assess that absorbing this contingent of part-time workers isn’t merely a humane policy, but it’s also a highly effective solution to utilize human resources rigorously formed through practical experience, especially during the development of a robust two-tier local government.
Numerous localities aren’t just blindly hiring; they’re also carefully reviewing academic qualifications and professional expertise to place people in the precise job positions, thoroughly maximizing the invaluable experience of this dedicated workforce.
Sharing her localized perspective, Head Phan Thi Thao of the Socio-Cultural Division in An Nhon Ward noted that the entire ward initially possessed a total of 29 part-time workers. After the May 31 deadline, eight people were successfully brought on board as civil servants, and nine secured public employee roles at the Project Management Board and the Public Service Supply Center, while four bravely continued working in the neighborhoods. The remainder officially resigned.
Head Phan Thi Thao emphasized that the recruitment was deliberately executed based on a comprehensive review of degrees, professional expertise, and specific job roles to ensure putting the right people in the right jobs.
Over at the grassroots security checkpoint in Binh Duc Neighborhood of Lai Thieu Ward, even though it’s the weekend, Phan Van Truong is still busy consulting and patiently guiding citizens to join voluntary social insurance and health insurance programs. This is his brand-new job after concluding more than 20 long years carrying out duties as a dedicated local part-time worker.
For Mr. Truong, public service has always been a core passion. He explained that throughout his entire working tenure, he was deeply attached to numerous activities caring for the local citizens; therefore, from May 31 onwards, he has been provided with the optimal conditions to actively participate in the crucial task of collecting voluntary social and health insurance premiums.
The HCMC Department of Home Affairs imparted that HCMC expects to recruit 292 commune-level part-time workers as civil servants at the Department of Health, together with various ward and commune People’s Committees. They also plan to accept 652 part-time workers as public employees stationed at public service units falling directly under the ward and commune authorities.
Up till now, HCMC has recruited 222 part-time workers as civil servants and 220 as public employees. Besides that, 72 wards and communes have proactively reassigned 182 commune-level part-time workers to serve in localized neighborhoods and hamlets.
