On the morning of September 14, a large number of Gojek drivers, both motorcyclists and motorists, gathered at the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Justice to submit their criminal record profiles to switch to other ride-hailing companies.
According to the Department of Justice, there has been an increase in the number of ride-hailing drivers applying for criminal record profiles in the past week, with up to 500 applications received from Gojek drivers on some days.
Accompanying the Gojek drivers in their job search, Tien Phong also observed an overload of applicants at other ride-hailing companies operating in Ho Chi Minh City. At 9 am on September 13, at the Be app registration point in the Sala urban area (Thu Duc City), hundreds of drivers held ready application dossiers, most of them from Gojek.
Pacing restlessly, waiting for his turn to be called, Mr. Le Ba Anh (52 years old, residing in Thu Duc City, with over 2 years of experience driving for Gojek) shared that the required documents are similar to other ride-sharing apps, including citizen identification, driver’s license, criminal record profile, vehicle registration, mandatory civil liability insurance for the vehicle, a SIM card registered under the driver’s name, and a health examination with a urine test for four types of drugs.
“The health examination, including the four types of drug tests, must be completed within 30 days from the app activation. New driver registration does not require a deposit, only a cost of 450,000 VND for uniforms and a helmet,” Mr. Anh shared. According to him, compared to the first half of 2024, there have been fewer customers booking rides through Gojek lately. Some drivers have registered with other apps, so they were not too surprised when Gojek announced its cessation of operations.
Also registering as a Be driver, Mr. Lam Minh Khanh (from District 4) said: “I arrived at 9:30, but there were no more numbers left, so I had to wait until the afternoon. Due to the large number of applicants, the procedures are quite simple. I just hope I won’t be rejected because there are too many applicants.”
Contacting the Be hotline for new driver registration procedures, we were guided by the operator to register online as the office in Thu Duc City was already overloaded.
Be app’s new driver registration point was bustling on September 13. Photo: H.H
On September 14, Tien Phong reporters were present at the new driver registration point of Xanh SM taxi in Binh Tan District (Ho Chi Minh City). At that time, there were five people waiting to complete the procedures at this registration point.
Costly and Unstable
At the Grab driver recruitment point on Ly Thuong Kiet Street (District 10), we met Mr. Mac Van Tuan (58 years old, from Hoc Mon District). He was still wearing the Gojek uniform but held the Grab uniform in his hand, having just successfully registered as a Grab driver. “Even though I’ve just registered, I’ve already spent 830,000 VND on buying a uniform and getting a criminal record profile. After a two-month trial period, I will also have to deposit 1 million VND,” Mr. Tuan said.
He further shared that he had just borrowed 1 million VND (with a daily repayment of 20,000 VND) to cover the job application expenses at the new company.
According to the Grab procedure officer at this location, despite the recent increase in the number of drivers applying to join Grab, the company has been accepting all applicants.
At the Xanh SM registration point for motorbikes at Vincom Quang Trung (Go Vap District), hundreds of drivers lined up to get a number. The staff in the registration area informed that they only accept applications on Mondays and Thursdays due to the large number of applicants. “Yesterday, we only issued 180 numbers, and those who came later had to wait for another day,” the staff said.
Fierce Competition
Sharing with Tien Phong, Mr. D.M.P (from District 6, Ho Chi Minh City) has six years of experience driving for ride-hailing companies. In the beginning, there were only a few such companies, so the competition was not as intense, and there were plenty of rides, making the drivers’ lives more stable. However, in the last one to two years, with the emergence of multiple ride-hailing apps and new passenger transport companies offering attractive promotions for both drivers and passengers, the competition has become much fiercer.
Mr. Minh (25 years old, from Bac Giang province) mentioned that one of his friends had registered with Xanh SM back in July but still hasn’t gotten a job because there are no more vehicles available. “I just left Gojek and registered with Xanh SM, but even though they accepted my application, I don’t know when I’ll get a vehicle to drive,” said Mr. Minh.
Many drivers who register as partners with ride-hailing companies do not have social insurance or unemployment benefits, so when they lose their jobs, they are left without any financial support. Mr. Nhan (from Long An province) shared, “I don’t have any allowance or benefits when I’m unemployed. At this time, I can’t register with other apps because everywhere I go, I have to spend millions of dong on uniforms, deposits, etc. If I register temporarily and then switch to another company, I will lose all the fees I paid previously.”
Social Insurance
In the afternoon of September 15, a representative of Grab Vietnam shared that the company has noticed an increase in the number of new driver-partners in some provinces and cities in recent days. Grab is implementing several programs to facilitate the onboarding process for new drivers. In Hanoi, for example, new Grab bike drivers are given a free uniform worth 150,000 VND, and they can earn a bonus of up to 1.4 million VND if they meet certain conditions…
Mr. Tran Anh Tuan, Deputy Director of the Institute for Research and Application of Innovation and Entrepreneurship, said that the transportation market in Vietnam still has a huge demand. The demand for transportation is not limited to people but also includes goods and the provision of materials. Even with Gojek’s exit, these job opportunities still exist, and other companies will either expand their market share or new companies will emerge.
“The field of ride-hailing provides a constant source of jobs, catering to both full-time and part-time workers. What needs attention now is the government’s support to ensure that these workers are not disadvantaged and that there is social welfare in place for ride-hailing drivers. In my opinion, a sociological study should be conducted to define the future demand for this workforce so that we can have solutions in terms of supervision and ensuring social welfare and rights for workers in this sector,” suggested Mr. Tuan.
According to Lawyer Nguyen Tri Duc, Director of Law Company 360, Ho Chi Minh City Bar Association, based on the Law on Social Insurance 2014, social insurance is a type of social insurance organized by the State, and both employees and employers must participate. According to Lawyer Duc, since the advent of ride-hailing apps in Vietnam, the issue of social insurance to protect the rights of drivers has been raised. However, up to now, this issue has not been resolved because there is no labor contract between the ride-hailing apps and the drivers, only a cooperation agreement. “As freelance drivers do not have a labor contract, they are not subject to compulsory social insurance. Therefore, I think that the authorities need to research and formulate social insurance policies for this informal workforce,” Lawyer Duc suggested.
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