Labor minister Norihisa Tamura on Tuesday expressed reservations about accepting more foreign workers as housekeepers, an idea backed by Prime Minister Shinzo Abe.
"Japanese people are also working in that sector and it would not be appropriate if they got expelled from the industry," said Tamura, who heads the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare.
The idea was proposed last Friday at a joint meeting of the Council on Economic and Fiscal Policy and the Industrial Competitiveness Council, advisory panels for the Abe government.
The prime minister supported the proposal by panel members from the private sector, who argued it would make it easier for Japanese women to leave their domestic duties and enter the workforce.
"We need to examine the significance of relying on foreign workers . . . and to research whether there is a real demand for them," Tamura said.