The first hire I learned to plan around

Letter from the table

To the Team Council,

In February 2025, I decided that I could not keep doing every task myself. I had been considering a first employee for months. On 14 February, I wrote the numbers in a notebook: a monthly salary of VND 8,000,000, plus the employer-side contributions and the time needed to understand registration and payroll. The salary was the figure I could see. The full cost was the figure I had to learn to calculate.

I am not asking for a way to avoid the rules. A person who works for me should have a proper contract and the protection that comes with formal employment. But as a very small employer, I found that the steps seemed designed for someone who already had a payroll department, or at least someone whose time was not already divided among every part of the business.

On 3 March, I set aside an evening to make a checklist. I looked at the labor contract, the documents needed for social-insurance registration, and what I would need to do for payroll and tax. I checked information from the relevant government services and Vietnam Social Security, and then asked an accountant to review my plan. I paid VND 1,200,000 for that help. It was money well spent, but it was another cost before the first month’s work had begun. I spent several more evenings checking that I had understood which steps belonged together and which had to be handled separately.

My calculation for a VND 8,000,000 monthly contribution base used the commonly applied employer-side rate of about 21.5 per cent for social, health and unemployment insurance: approximately VND 1,720,000 in contributions, before other employment costs. Actual obligations depend on

the worker and the applicable contribution base. I understood that these contributions were not simply a fee; they were part of making employment more secure. What I could not easily plan for was the combination of a significant additional cost and rules that took time and advice to interpret.

I adapted by delaying the hire and taking the work back onto my own schedule. In March, I moved administrative tasks to evenings and weekends and reduced the number of things I tried to complete in a day. I kept the VND 1,720,000 estimate in my monthly budget, and I did not treat the salary alone as the cost of hiring. I also kept money aside for help with registration and payroll. These adjustments made the decision more responsible, but they did not make the work disappear. They meant that the first hire remained a decision I had to postpone until I felt able to carry both the wage and the administrative burden.

When I did move ahead, I wanted the arrangement to be formal from the beginning. I used a written labor contract, checked the registration steps with the accountant, and kept copies of the records and payment calculations together. I was relieved to have a process I could follow. I was also aware that I had managed it because I had paid for help and had time to check each step. Another owner with less cash, or less confidence in reading official guidance, might simply wait longer before hiring formally.

That is why I support the Team Council’s proposed Fair Hiring Cost Standard. For a business’s first ten hires, I would like to see social contributions phased in for the employer, without taking away the worker’s entitlements; one clear registration route for payroll and required employment records; and rules that are stable and explained in plain language. The public system should make clear what is due, when it is due, and how the amount is calculated. A small employer should not have to discover the full cost through a series of separate forms and paid consultations.

Phasing should be designed carefully. It should not make a worker’s protection depend on the size of the employer, and it should not encourage businesses to keep people outside formal employment. The transition

should be transparent, time-limited, and simple to administer. If there is a temporary reduction or credit for a first hire, the worker’s record and benefits should still be protected. Predictability matters as much as the amount: I need to know the cost before I make an offer, not after I have committed to a wage.