Tag - jobs

 
 

JOBS

A former nonregular government employee, who cooked lunch for a public school in the Tohoku region, says she was dismissed after she was made to take an open recruitment exam.
JAPAN / Society / Regional Voices: Tohoku
May 19, 2025
Civil service contract workers fear lack of job security
Contracted civil servants are paid about half the salaries of regular staff or even less, and a fear of being dismissed hangs over their heads.
FemUniti was founded in 2024 by Setsu Suzuki (right) and Meagan Ward (second from left) to empower women entrepreneurs and connect them to resources and opportunities.
COMMUNITY / Issues / The Foreign Element
May 19, 2025
Detroit-Nagoya network empowers women-owned businesses around the world
Supporting women in business is a “blueprint for the future,” says the cofounder of femUniti — and she has the data to back it up.
Nissan's Oppama plant in Yokosuka, Kanagawa Prefecture, may be closed as part of the struggling carmaker's streamlining efforts.
BUSINESS / Companies
May 18, 2025
Nissan to solicit early retirements while eyeing plant closures in Japan
The move comes after sources said a day earlier that the carmaker was considering closing two plants in Kanagawa Prefecture.
Muneyuki Izawa, a chef at the Japanese ambassador's official residence in Phnom Penh, prepares Japanese cuisine dishes.
JAPAN
May 18, 2025
Japan working to improve treatment of 'culinary diplomats' in diplomatic missions
In July, the ministry will start accepting applications for chef positions under improved working conditions, with the improved treatment set to take effect next January.
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba attends a Cabinet meeting in Tokyo on Friday.
JAPAN / Politics
May 16, 2025
Pension bill makes it to parliament after two-month delay
Internal resistance from the ruling Liberal Democratic Party toward certain proposals in the draft bill led to the delay.
A Mynavi survey has found that even dual-income households are facing financial strain in Japan.
JAPAN / Society
May 16, 2025
Finances are tight for dual-income households too, survey finds
Nearly half of full-time workers whose spouses also work say they are struggling financially.
Scott Callon, CEO of Japan Display Inc, will step down on June 1 to take responsibility for the company's poor performance.
BUSINESS / Companies
May 16, 2025
Japan Display to cut 1,500 jobs in Japan on consecutive years of losses
The struggling maker of small and midsize liquid crystal display panels reported a consolidated net loss of ¥78.2 billion ($538.7 million) for fiscal 2024.
Japan is considering adding three more sectors, including distribution warehouse management, to its program to grant residency status to foreign workers with what are being called "specified skills."
JAPAN
May 16, 2025
Japan eyes three more sectors for foreign workers program
The three sectors — distribution warehouse management, services supplying sheets and towels to hotels, and resource recycling — are struggling to secure workers.
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba said the government will do all it can to raise wages, particularly for small and midsize businesses, which account for 70% of employment in Japan.
BUSINESS / Economy
May 15, 2025
Japan to target 1% real wage gains within the next five years
The goal is based on the premise that stable and sustainable 2% inflation is in place.
Japan will call for the public and private sectors to spend about ¥60 trillion in total over the five years to fiscal 2029 to improve the productivity of small and midsize companies.
BUSINESS / Economy
May 14, 2025
Japan considers five-year wage hike plan for smaller firms
The government will call on the public and private sectors to spend about ¥60 trillion in total over the five years.
Trainees from Indonesia and Vietnam learn about the mechanisms of train doors using a model at East Japan Railway's training center in Shirakawa, Fukushima Prefecture, in March.
JAPAN / FOCUS
May 14, 2025
JR East to start training foreign nationals under new skills program
JR East aims to train around 100 people each year, and more than 10 railway operators have already expressed interest in joining the initiative.
Liberal Democratic Party executives at a General Council meeting on Tuesday at the party's headquarters in Tokyo
JAPAN / Politics
May 14, 2025
LDP approves pension reform legislation
The government aims to adopt the legislation at a Cabinet meeting Friday and submit it to the current session of the Diet, the country's parliament.
Nissan CEO Ivan Espinosa in Tokyo as the company releases its results
BUSINESS / Companies
May 13, 2025
Nissan gets ‘wake-up call’ with $4.5 billion annual net loss
The company plans more than 10,000 job cuts globally in addition to the 9,000 cuts announced previously.
U.S. President Donald Trump’s tariffs on cars and car parts imported to the U.S. have been painful to most global brands, but crippling in Nissan’s case.
BUSINESS
May 13, 2025
Nissan shares surge as carmaker set to cut 20,000 jobs in huge overhaul
The heavily indebted company, one of the top 10 automakers by unit sales, is expected to log a record annual loss of around $5 billion later in the day.
Panasonic is targeting 10,000 job cuts worldwide as part of efforts to boost profitability.
BUSINESS / Companies
May 9, 2025
Panasonic targets 10,000 job cuts worldwide
The cuts will focus on positions at consolidated companies — 5,000 in Japan and 5,000 overseas.
Nominal cash earnings rose 2.1% from a year earlier, decelerating from a revised 2.7% pace in February and below a median economist forecast of 2.5%, according to the labor ministry.
BUSINESS / Economy
May 9, 2025
Japan’s nominal wage growth slows, backing case for BOJ caution
Nominal cash earnings rose 2.1% from a year earlier, decelerating from a revised 2.7% pace in February and below a median economist forecast of 2.5%.
Those who entered the job market from around 1993 to 2004, when long-term stagnation started, are likely to struggle even more to make ends meet after retirement.
JAPAN / Society / FOCUS
May 7, 2025
Japan's 'ice age' employment generation is at risk of poverty during retirement
Due to low wages the generation tends to earn and protracted pension adjustments, many may end up relying on welfare benefits.
A growing number of young professionals are becoming increasingly reliant on AI tools like ChatGPT for both work and personal tasks, leading to diminished confidence, critical thinking skills and potential emotional dependence.
COMMENTARY / World
May 7, 2025
Addicted to ChatGPT? Here’s how to reclaim your brain
Launched by OpenAI in late 2022, now regularly used by more than 400 million people.
Takaaki Nezu, executive director of Maruto Group Holdings, says it is the company’s social responsibility to help tackle the falling birth rate.
JAPAN / Regional Voices: Fukushima
May 5, 2025
Fukushima firms seek ways to encourage marriages
One supermarket chain has said such moves reflect a corporate responsibility to tackle the nation’s chronically low birth rate.
The health ministry and some municipalities are turning to spot workers to solve the labor shortage in the nursing care industry.
JAPAN / Society
May 5, 2025
More nursing care facilities in Japan embrace 'spot work' amid labor shortage
The demand for care providers is expected to rise to around 2.4 million by fiscal 2026 and about 2.72 million by fiscal 2040.

Longform

Mount Fuji is considered one of Japan's most iconic symbols and is a major draw for tourists. It's still a mountain, though, and potential hikers need to properly prepare for any climb.
What it takes to save lives on Mount Fuji