Female worker on the journey of bringing jobs back to her hometown

An Binh is one of the most remote communes in the province, nearly 200km from Viet Tri center, bordering Ninh Binh province. Here, industry, services and trade have not yet developed, so finding a side job to increase income is a "luxury", especially for women. Right in that rural area, there is a woman who used to work far away from home and decided to return to open a garment factory with the biggest wish: to create jobs and stable income for female workers in rural areas. Ms. Dinh Thi Phuong Thao, owner of Cuong Thao garment factory, was recently honored to receive a Certificate of Merit from the Chairman of the Provincial People's Committee at the 1st Patriotic Emulation Congress of Phu Tho province, period 2025-2030.

Ms. Dinh Thi Phuong Thao opened a garment factory to create jobs for dozens of local female workers.

From migrant worker to garment factory owner

Following the An Binh commune officials, we had the opportunity to visit the Cuong Thao garment factory located in Tien Lu village, directly managed by Ms. Thao. The last days of the year, the garment factory is busier than ever. Amidst the bustling sound of sewing machines, Ms. Thao bustles back and forth between sewing lines to check and instruct workers on each order. It is known that before becoming the owner, Ms. Thao was a worker at the Samsung Electronics Company in Bac Ninh with a stable income of 9-12 million VND/month. However, after many years working in an industrial environment, living with many other women who were also away from home to work for hire, she realized the hardships of women away from their families and the disadvantages of children when they had to be away from their parents. That urged Ms. Thao to find a new direction to develop and stabilize her life.

In 2019, when she married Mr. Le Ngoc Cuong, who has a tradition of sewing in Phuc Tho ( Hanoi ), Ms. Thao began to cherish the idea of ​​opening a sewing workshop right in her hometown. She shared: "At that time, I just wanted to have a job, be close to my children and create jobs for women in my hometown." Thinking and doing, she gathered all the capital after many years of working and borrowed an additional 400 million VND, Ms. Thao and her husband renovated the family's garden of more than 3,000 square meters to build a sewing workshop. In March 2020, Cuong Thao sewing workshop officially went into operation, starting with just a few sewing machines and a small group of workers, specializing in receiving reprocessed goods from large sewing factories in Phuc Tho.

From those first orders, with her diligence, hard work and carefulness, she has had direct orders from major partners in Ho Chi Minh City and many provinces and cities. Up to now, her garment factory has 9 production teams specializing in cutting, sewing and packaging. Each month, the factory processes about 20,000 products, achieving revenue from 800 million to 1.2 billion VND, with a stable profit of 70-100 million VND. Sharing about the early days of starting a business, Ms. Thao confided: At that time, my establishment was like a "newbie" among hundreds of traditional garment factories in Phuc Tho. I determined that if I wanted to survive and not have to "re-submit" orders from large factories, the products had to be of good quality and follow their own path." After many years of market research, Thao and her husband decided to focus on two main product lines: home pajamas and sun protection clothing. It was the spirit of learning and daring to take challenges that helped Cuong Thao garment factory quickly gain the trust of partners. The factory's pajamas and sun protection products are popular, and orders are increasingly stable. In 2023, despite difficulties due to economic fluctuations, the factory still maintained a revenue of 6-7 billion VND; in 2024, revenue reached 11 billion VND, ensuring a stable income for workers. In addition, Thao's family always fully fulfills tax and insurance obligations and actively participates in emulation movements and local economic development.

Trusted address for female workers

Not simply a production facility, in this remote countryside, Cuong Thao garment factory has profound social significance. Currently, the facility creates regular jobs for over 50 local workers and neighboring communes. Most of them are middle-aged women, rural workers with an average income of 5-7 million VND/person/month, enough for many families to stabilize their lives without having to leave their hometown. What is special is that Ms. Thao always prioritizes recruiting and training women in difficult circumstances. "Women in the countryside are disadvantaged, they have to take care of housework, work in the fields, and want to have an income. If we have a stable job close to home, our lives will be less difficult," Ms. Thao confided. Therefore, for many years, Ms. Thao's garment factory has been teaching free vocational training to new workers and supporting lunch, 100,000 VND/month for gasoline, and paying all three types of insurance for workers. During holidays, when orders increase, she arranges flexible shifts, ensuring workers have extra income while still having time to take care of their families.

Not stopping there, Ms. Thao is preparing to expand the workshop, adding 10 more industrial sewing machines, and building a small dormitory to create conditions for workers living far away to take a nap. She also hopes to access more capital support policies and vocational training to be able to expand the model and connect with businesses in the larger garment chain.

Developing the economy, Cuong Thao garment factory is also a leading unit contributing to social, humanitarian and charitable activities in the commune. During the Covid-19 period, Cuong Thao garment factory donated 10,000 cloth masks and 5 million VND to the commune's Steering Committee for Epidemic Prevention. Every year, Ms. Thao actively participates in charity activities, she has supported the Central region people affected by floods with 10 million VND, 60 boxes of instant noodles and hundreds of sets of clothes. Every year, her family's garment factory is one of the typical establishments participating in contributing to the local "For the poor", "Repaying gratitude", "Social security" funds.

With her efforts in economic development and active participation in social activities, Ms. Thao is a shining example in the movement "Women actively study, work creatively, and build happy families".

Since 2020, her family has continuously received Certificates of Merit from the Provincial People's Committee, the Prime Minister and many certificates of merit from the locality. This is not only a recognition for good production and business achievements but also a respect for the woman who has quietly brought jobs and stable income to workers in her own homeland.

Thanh Hoa

Source: https://baophutho.vn/nu-cong-nhan-voi-hanh-trinh-dua-viec-lam-ve-que-241265.htm