Editorials Jun 22, 2019
Companies need to consider rising minimum wages not as a threat to their bottom lines but as an opportunity to secure the manpower they need and improve their productivity by making necessary investments.
Commentary / Japan Jun 20, 2019
Look at the SOFA pool of labor
by Robert D. Eldridge
An overlooked pool of potential workers is the dependent population of U.S. military personnel assigned to Japan.
Business / Corporate May 7, 2019
Nearly 40% of companies see low retention rate for midcareer hires: survey
Close to 40 percent of employers feel they have low retention rates for regular employees hired in the middle of their careers, according to a survey. The survey was conducted online by recruitment agency En-Japan Inc. between late January and late February on companies that ...
National Mar 26, 2019
Nepal has signed a memorandum of cooperation to send to Japan "specified skilled" workers for the first time. The broad framework agreement, signed in Kathmandu on Monday by Japanese Ambassador Masamichi Saigo and a Nepalese government representative, opens the door to Nepalese blue-collar workers getting ...
National Mar 11, 2019
Japan to require foreign workers arriving on new visas to submit medical certificates
The Justice Ministry plans to require foreign workers entering the country using new working visas to submit medical certificates, sources with knowledge of the matter have said. Such foreign workers will be required to receive confirmation by doctors that they are capable of working in ...
National | Help Wanted? Dec 31, 2018
Foreign talent eager to work for Japanese firms, but staid office culture a hindrance
by Kazuaki Nagata
Dozens of young people from around Asia descended on Tokyo last month for a job fair, dressed in a plain black suit of the type considered "the uniform" for Japanese college students when they meet with prospective employers. Some of the visitors said they were ...
Commentary / Japan Dec 4, 2018
A new immigration policy for Japan
by Haruaki Deguchi
Japan should focus on accepting highly skilled immigrants and leverage domestic resources to solve its shortage of unskilled labor.
National / Politics Nov 28, 2018
Japan's Upper House begins debate on bill to expand use of foreign labor
Debate on a bill to accept more foreign blue-collar workers begins in the House of Councilors after the ruling bloc forced it through the Lower House the previous day.
National | FOCUS Nov 19, 2018
by Tomohiro Osaki and Sakura Murakami
A ruckus in the Diet over erroneous statistics leaves the government’s Dec. 10 deadline for passage of new legislation in doubt.
National | View from Osaka Nov 17, 2018
Kansai business community sees future foreign worker influx with both hope and concern
by Eric Johnston
The news last week that Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's government is preparing to admit up to 345,000 foreign workers by 2023 has been met with a combination of hope they will help prop up agricultural, manufacturing and service sectors that are struggling to find ...
National Nov 16, 2018
Japan looks to hold tests in seven countries for farm jobs under new visas
Although cautious, Japanese firms are ready to hire foreign workers who will come to the country under a new visa arrangement.
National / Politics Nov 14, 2018
More than 345,000 foreign workers predicted to come to Japan under new visas: government
by Reiji Yoshida and Sakura Murakami
Some 345,000 blue-collar foreign workers may join the workforce through the first five years of a new working visa system set to be introduced in April — if it wins Diet approval.