Vietnam’s Gig Workers and Families Struggle as Fuel Prices Surge Due to Iran Crisis

HO CHI MINH CITY, Vietnam — For Nguyen, a motorbike rideshare driver in Vietnam’s largest city, each shift now begins with a grim calculation: Will his earnings cover the skyrocketing cost of fuel? After seven hours behind the wheel, Nguyen earned 240,000 Vietnamese dong ($9.11) recently — but spent half of it on petrol. ‘I can’t survive with this amount of money in the city,’ he said, requesting anonymity to speak freely. His story is not unique. Across Vietnam, the ripple effects of the ongoing US-Israel conflict with Iran are crippling gig workers, families, and small businesses as fuel prices surge due to disruptions in global oil supply chains. Diesel costs have more than doubled, while petrol prices have risen nearly 30%, transforming daily commutes and livelihoods into financial landmines.

How the Iran Crisis Triggered Vietnam’s Fuel Price Surge

Vietnam, a net importer of oil, normally sources about 80% of its crude from Kuwait. But shipments have ground to a halt since Iran began enforcing an effective blockade of the Strait of Hormuz — a critical chokepoint for global oil transit — in retaliation to the US-Israel military campaign. The Strait, through which roughly 20% of the world’s oil passes daily, has seen reduced traffic as tensions escalate. Vietnam’s Ministry of Industry and Trade confirmed in late April that crude oil imports from Kuwait had stopped entirely, leaving refiners scrambling for alternatives. The sudden supply disruption sent domestic fuel prices soaring: diesel more than doubled from pre-crisis levels, while petrol jumped nearly 30%. For a nation where over 7 million motorcycles clog the streets of Ho Chi Minh City alone, these increases are not just an inconvenience — they are an economic emergency.

The Human Cost: Gig Workers Bear the Brunt

Gig economy workers, already operating on razor-thin margins, are among the hardest hit. Nguyen’s experience is typical: after a full day’s work earning less than $10, he spent nearly $5 on fuel. ‘Many drivers are turning off the app, going home and just not working,’ he said. His decision to pause work reflects a broader exodus from ride-hailing platforms like Be, Grab, and Gojek, as drivers refuse to subsidize their employers’ profits through unpaid fuel costs. ‘After today, I will turn off the app and stop working for a few days to see if the price goes down or if the government is helping in any way,’ Nguyen told Al Jazeera.

‘Because the petrol price is so high, so many drivers are turning off the app, going home and just not working.’ — Nguyen, Ho Chi Minh City rideshare driver

Why Vietnam’s Gig Economy Offers No Safety Net

Vietnam’s gig workers, numbering over 5 million according to the Vietnam Digital Communications Association, operate in a legal gray area. They lack formal employment contracts, collective bargaining rights, or social protections like health insurance or pensions. ‘Their income is changeable due to factors beyond their control,’ said Do Hai Ha, a research fellow at the University of Melbourne who studies Vietnam’s gig platforms. ‘They have no chance to negotiate with the platforms.’ The absence of minimum wage guarantees or overtime pay exacerbates their vulnerability. As fuel prices rise, drivers are forced to work longer hours to maintain income — but with each kilometre clocked costing more, the math quickly becomes unsustainable.

Government Responds with Emergency Tax Cuts, But Relief Is Temporary

Facing mounting public anger over rising living costs, Vietnam’s government has taken swift action. On April 1, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh announced the suspension of an environmental tax on diesel, petrol, and aviation fuel until April 15, 2025 — a move expected to cost the national treasury an estimated $273 million in lost revenue. The tax cut, initially introduced in 2015 to curb pollution and fund green initiatives, was seen as a necessary lifeline. Nguyen Khac Giang, a Vietnamese-born visiting fellow at the ISEAS-Yusof Ishak Institute in Singapore, noted that the government’s intervention was critical to ‘stave off rising disgruntlement among citizens.’ ‘There are a lot of complaints and frustrations about rising living costs, because gas prices are everything in Vietnam,’ Giang said. ‘It’s not only necessary in terms of making the population feel relief about the rise of gas prices, but at the same time, it will keep the macroeconomic stability intact, given the turbulence outside Vietnam.’

Broader Economic Strain: Public Transport, Airlines, and Fisheries Suffer

The fuel crisis extends far beyond ride-hailing apps. In Ho Chi Minh City, public buses — already overcrowded — are operating at reduced capacity as operators cut routes to offset losses. Anh Dao, a fare collector on bus route 13, said her operator has been losing money despite a modest 3,000 dong ($0.11) fare hike. ‘As we already signed the contract, we cannot just stop running the buses,’ she told Al Jazeera. Domestic airlines like Vietnam Airlines and Vietjet Air have also slashed flights, citing unsustainable fuel costs. Meanwhile, in the coastal province of Binh Thuan, fishermen are abandoning diesel-powered boats in favor of cheaper, less efficient alternatives. One fisherman, who asked not to be identified, said his catch prices had plummeted from 800,000 dong ($30) to 650,000 dong ($24) per basket due to reduced demand from middlemen. ‘Now that fuel prices are rising, it’s having a big impact,’ he said. Even Vietnam’s vaunted manufacturing sector, a backbone of its economy, faces headwinds as logistics costs spiral.

Families Feel the Pinch: Cooking Gas, School Commutes, and Childcare Costs Rise

For low-income families, the fuel crisis is reshaping daily life in profound ways. Uyen Pham, a communications manager for the Saigon Children’s Charity, recently returned from a weeklong trip to the Mekong Delta. She recounted seeing parents make impossible choices: ‘Several parents noted that the cost of bottled cooking gas has nearly doubled,’ she said. ‘Most of our beneficiary families have always relied on wood-fired stoves or a hybrid of wood and gas to save money. With the recent price hike, they are now strictly limiting their gas usage even further, relying almost entirely on wood to cut every possible expense.’ The crisis has also strained family bonds. Many parents in rural areas must leave their children with grandparents to work in cities. Rising fuel prices inflate commuting costs while wages stagnate, forcing some to visit their children less often. ‘Rising fuel prices directly increase their commuting costs, while manual labour wages remain stagnant,’ Pham said. ‘This pinches their take-home pay and, in some cases, reduces how often they can afford to travel home to see their children.’

Long-Term Energy Independence: Vietnam’s Pivot Away from Oil Dependence

The fuel crisis has intensified calls for Vietnam to accelerate its transition toward energy independence. With only two refineries serving a population of 99 million, Vietnam imports over 70% of its oil, leaving it acutely vulnerable to global shocks. The Nghi Son Refinery and Petrochemical Complex, Vietnam’s largest, supplies about 40% of the country’s petrol needs but is now facing a crude oil shortage expected to exhaust its reserves by the end of May. In late April, Prime Minister Chinh and a delegation from the Ministry of Industry and Trade visited the refinery in Thanh Hoa to assess the situation. Officials confirmed that finding alternative crude sources was an ‘urgent priority.’ ‘The longer-term question this crisis has enacted is a very important question about the strategic autonomy of Vietnam in terms of energy dependencies, especially when we are a net importer of oil,’ Giang said. He urged policymakers to ‘more aggressively accelerate Vietnam’s energy independence by building more refineries,’ noting that current infrastructure is insufficient for domestic demand.

Key Takeaways: Vietnam’s Fuel Crisis by the Numbers

• Diesel prices in Vietnam have more than doubled since the start of the Iran crisis, while petrol prices rose nearly 30%.
• Gig workers in Ho Chi Minh City report spending up to 50% of earnings on fuel, forcing many to quit ride-hailing apps.
• The Vietnamese government suspended an environmental tax on fuel to the tune of $273 million in lost revenue to ease prices until April 2025.
• Public transport, domestic airlines, and fisheries are operating at reduced capacity due to unsustainable fuel costs.
• Long-term energy independence is now a national priority, with calls to expand refinery capacity amid dwindling crude supplies.

Can Vietnam Weather the Storm? Outlook and Challenges Ahead

As Vietnam grapples with the fallout of the Iran crisis, the road to recovery remains uncertain. Short-term fixes like tax suspensions and emergency crude sourcing may provide temporary relief, but analysts warn that deeper structural reforms are needed. ‘As a very, very open economy, Vietnam is super vulnerable to international shocks,’ Giang said. The crisis has exposed the fragility of gig economy labor protections and the urgent need for social safety nets. Meanwhile, families like those in the Mekong Delta continue to make painful sacrifices, choosing between heating their homes, feeding their children, and staying connected to their loved ones. For Nguyen, the rideshare driver, the government’s interventions offer little comfort. ‘I don’t know when things will get better,’ he said. ‘But I do know that if I keep driving, I’ll keep losing money.’

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