Hire in Laos

Overview of Laos

Population: 7,689,788 million (2024 est.)

GDP: $92.60 billion USD (2024 est.)

Economic Overview:

In the year 2021, the economic growth of Laos is being estimated to rebound to approximately 4.9%. Earlier in 2020, the country’s economic growth had declined to 0.4%, which was the lowest it had been in the past three decades. The rebound is expected due to the prime minister’s vows in March to tackle the public debt, boost exports, and create more and more job opportunities.

Overview of the industries in Laos

• Being an undeveloped country, the major generation of GDP is from the agricultural sector. Its contribution is about 51% of the total GDP and employs approximately 80% of the total working class.

• The industrial sector is responsible for 22% contribution to the GDP as it employs just 3.3% of the working class. The service sector is further accountable for the 27% contribution with about 10.3% of the working class.

• As the agricultural sector plays an important role in the GDP, the country is developing light industries to produce textiles and garments (made of cotton and silk) famous throughout the world.

• Two new components are being developed in Laos’ service sector, tourism, and banking increasing the export earnings.

• In May 2020, Laos ranked 3rd for having the fastest mobile internet speed among the ASEAN countries. The average download speed is 30.33 Mbps, whereas the average upload speed is 15.06 Mbps.

Cost of living

The cost of living may vary from person to person as per his; or her situation. The major factors that affect the cost of living are the mode of transportation chosen by the person to travel around, the taxes to be paid, electricity and gas bills, insurance, and childcare in some cases. All of these are considered to be the basic requirements to be fulfilled.

Breakdown of the average cost of living in Laos

All these expenses sum up to approximately 800$ - 2000$ per month for the basic needs only. It excludes the cost of entertainment, clothing, and other non-important facilities. Adding that might make the figure roughly 1500$ - 3000$ a month.

Cost of renting

The average cost for renting an apartment - single or shared depends on the apartment’s location in the city. An apartment in an expensive area can cost up to 3000$ for 900 sq ft, whereas an apartment of the same size in a normal area will cost 1200$ a month. Although, sharing the apartment can result in reduced costs.

Cost of living in major cities of Laos

The different cities in the country of Laos are differentiated based on administrative divisions of Laos. The first division includes the provinces and the prefecture. The second division is for the districts, and the third division is for the villages

1. The first division includes the 17 provinces and; 1 prefecture (also the capital city Vientiane) like Savannakhet, Khammouane, and others.
2. The second division includes the districts like Sangthong District, May District, Xay District, and the rest.
3. The third division is the villages which can be termed as the further subdivisions of the districts.

Talent

Top opportunities for the working class

1. Translator
2. People Manager
3. Consultant
4. Bank Managers
5. Chief Executive officer 
6. Doctor or Surgeon
7. Regional Manager
8. Risk and Fraud Agent
9. Textile Industry

Top skills in Laos

Laos is a small country and an undeveloped one which means they are more reliable in the service sector and agriculture. Although people in the working class are skilled in the industrial sector, such people’s ratio is low compared to the rest.

These are the main industries present in Laos

• Tourism
• Garments
• Rubber
• Copper
• Cement
• Electric Power
• Timber

City-wise skill bifurcation

Each city has different job requirements as per the needs of the city itself. A more suitable city for agriculture has jobs related to it whereas the one with information technology ones has the openings for the same.

Hiring Cost

The hiring cost plays an integral part in the hiring process of a person as the cost must cover all their basic expenses and some amount over that to save or use however they want. The cost may differ from city to city as per the cost of living and overall expenditures of an individual.

Several factors can affect the hiring cost for any job role:

• Internal recruiting costs include the interview costs, employee referral bonus, recruiter salary, office rental, or any other physical structure.

• External recruiting costs including travel costs, advertising costs, technology costs, signing bonuses, agency fees, etc.

Salary structure for various roles

Employment Laws in Laos

1. An employer is to provide proper training to its employees to develop the skills as well as knowledge. Also, the employer must ensure that the working environment is safe and has water and other necessities.
2. The working hours are six days in a week and not more than 8 hours in one day, which means no more than 48 hours a week.
3. The internal regulations of the company must not conflict with the labor law issued by the government.
4. The employer should not ask the employee to work overtime for more than 45 hours a month. Also, it should not be for more than; 4 days in continuation unless a natural disaster is faced.
5. The employee should be given 15 days of annual leave at full pay with 30 days of medical leave with a medical certificate.
6. A pregnant employee or one with a child of less than a year is not allowed to carry heavy weights or stand for a longer period. If required, she should be assigned less hectic work but must be paid the usual pay.
7. Employers can terminate an employee’s contract if the company has to deduct the staff due to some reason if the employee fails to showcase the skills required for the job or is not well to continue to work.

How Can Skuad Help You With Hiring In Laos?

Hiring in Laos is a multi-faceted task requiring in-depth knowledge of the laws, trends, hiring costs, living costs city-wise, and more. Skuad comes onboard as a one-stop solution handling every minute aspect of recruitment. It gives you the freedom and time to focus on your project and expansion plans without any hiring stress. Connect with Skuad today!