The city of Kashiwazaki in Niigata Prefecture has offered a job to one of the five Japanese abducted to North Korea more than 20 years ago and currently back in Japan.
The offer was made as part of efforts to help Kaoru Hasuike and his wife, Yukiko, resettle in Japan permanently.
Kashiwazaki Mayor Masazumi Saikawa visited Hasuike at his wife's home on Friday and proposed that Hasuike work at the city hall, according to family members who were present.
Hasuike smiled without replying, they said, adding that the mayor told the 45-year-old to contact him if he is interested in the offer.
They said Saikawa also told the Hasuikes the city is considering ways of helping the couple resettle in Japan.
Toru Hasuike, the abductee's elder brother, said later that his brother appears to have become more positive about living in Japan permanently.
"My brother doesn't say anything, but he is not packing his things, either," the elder brother said. "He is optimistic about settling here permanently."
Family members said the mayor told the couple, "It's not good to stay inside the house, although I understand that you are worried about your children. I suggest you go outside and do some exercise for a change."
That led Saikawa to suggest Hasuike work for the city, they said.