The number of people receiving livelihood assistance known as seikatsu hogo (literally, livelihood protection), Japan's final social safety net, increased for nine consecutive months and reached a record 2,108,096 as of March 2012.

According to the health and welfare ministry, the number of people on welfare rose by about 86,000 in the past year.

On July 25, a subcommittee of the Central Minimum Wages Council, an advisory body for the health and welfare minister, decided to raise minimum wages nationwide by an average ¥7 to ¥744 an hour in fiscal 2012.