'Single mind' no more: Abe's onetime right-hand man sees his influence dwindle
Despite his long history of supporting the prime minister, the chief cabinet secretary is finding himself increasingly marginalized.
Japan ministries and agencies to run telework campaigns for staff
They are expected to review work processes currently required to be done in the office and make plans to improve their computer and telecommunications environments.
Much ado about retirement ages and Japan's politicized bureaucracy
The scandal surrounding top prosecutor Hiromu Kurokawa has kicked off a debate on retirement ages and interference in Japan's civil service.
The National Personnel Authority said Tuesday that it will again postpone the fiscal 2020 first-stage written test for career-track national public servants as the state of emergency has been extended to contain the spread of the new coronavirus. It will announce the new exam date ...
Diet starts debate on retirement age hike for government workers
The Diet on Thursday started debating bills to raise the retirement age of national civil servants at a plenary meeting of the House of Representatives. According to the legislation, the retirement age, which now stands at 60, would be raised by one every two years ...
Japanese cities and prefectures hire workers left jobless in virus chaos
Prefectural and municipal governments are moving to hire people who have lost their jobs in the economic chaos caused by the coronavirus pandemic. The initiative, which is being applied to those who were fired or saw informal job offers get canceled, is performing a dual ...
Japan starts certifying archivists after criticism of lax record-keeping
The National Archives of Japan will introduce a system in fiscal 2020 to certify archivists amid growing public criticism of lax management of official records by the government. The certification system is aimed at improving the maintenance of public records. But experts question whether it ...
Cardboard and plastic: Tottori Prefecture goes low-tech to protect officials from COVID-19
In a nation famed for its cutting-edge robots and toilets, one prefecture is going defiantly low-tech in its effort to defend its officials against COVID-19. In what has been proudly dubbed a "Tottori-style office system," the Tottori Prefectural Government has begun using cardboard and plastic ...
Japan pushes male public servants to take longer paternity leave
The government will encourage its eligible male personnel to use child-rearing leave for at least a month in principle, starting in fiscal 2020. Although the number of government employees taking paternity leave has been increasing, the period booked is shorter than a month in most ...
A Tokyo prosecutor's delayed retirement spurs more allegations of Abe cronyism
Over the past month, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and his government once again found themselves the target of allegations of political favoritism. This time it was for bending, if not breaking, the rule governing the mandatory retirement age of national public servants in order to ...
Rethinking the need for personal stamps and seals in modern society
Last month, MUFG Bank Ltd. started offering ¥1,000 to each of its first 100,000 customers willing to give up their paper passbooks. MUFG wants people to switch to online banking, which is cheaper for banks — and not just because they can save on ...
New Japan Post chief vows to regain trust as ex-bureaucrats take reins after scandal
New Japan Post Holdings Co. President Hiroya Masuda pledged Monday to regain the public's trust in the former state-owned postal group now being rocked by scandal. "We are facing the biggest crisis since the foundation (of the postal group)," Masuda, 68, told executives of the ...
