Social Issues Aug 2, 2020
More older single people in Japan turned away from apartment rentals
Welfare and health facilities often demand a guarantor or family member to provide security before admitting a new resident.
General Jul 16, 2020
A Tokyo temple offers pandemic-hit Vietnamese workers a safe haven
by Sakura Murakami
Lured by higher wages but often burdened by debt to recruiters, Vietnamese are the fastest-growing group of foreign nationals in Japan.
World / Politics Oct 15, 2019
Populists win in Poland polls raises fears of new EU tensions
Poland's governing right-wing populist party won a weekend election, full official results showed on Monday, retaining a parliamentary majority that could allow it to pursue a judicial reform agenda that has put it at loggerheads with the EU. The triumph by the Law and Justice ...
National Aug 4, 2019
In Japan, allergies and dental problems higher among kids in families getting welfare
The proportion of children with allergies or dental problems is more than 10 times higher in families on welfare than in those not receiving benefits, a recent university study showed. Stress, house dust and a lack of supervision with no one around to guide children ...
Business / Economy May 7, 2019
Trump may redefine poverty, cutting Americans from welfare rolls
The Trump administration may alter the way it determines the national poverty threshold, putting Americans living on the margins at risk of losing access to welfare programs. The possible move would involve changing how inflation is calculated in the "official poverty measure," the White House ...
National Mar 16, 2019
The government plans to set up a task force with the aim of encouraging cities with populations of 200,000 or more to establish child counseling centers at a time when the number of consultations related to child abuse is increasing. The planned task force will ...
Business Dec 21, 2018
As social security, defense expenses continue to rise, Cabinet OKs record ¥101 trillion draft budget
The Cabinet of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe on Friday approved a record-high ¥101.46 trillion draft budget for fiscal 2019, topping ¥100 trillion for the first time amid swelling social security and defense expenses, meaning Japan remains far from consolidating its battered fiscal health despite ...
World Sep 23, 2018
Trump administration moves to restrict immigrants who use public benefits
The Trump administration Saturday said it would propose making it harder for foreigners to come to the United States or remain there if they have received or are likely to receive public benefits such as food aid, public housing or Medicaid. The proposed regulation from ...
Business Aug 27, 2018
Macron targets French welfare spending as deficit pressure rises
French President Emmanuel Macron's government will tackle social spending in the next wave of its reforms as weaker than expected growth puts pressure on the budget deficit, the prime minister said on Sunday. Prime Minister Edouard Philippe said in an interview in Le Journal du ...
National May 7, 2018
More of Japan's non-Japanese are living on welfare
by Magdalena Osumi
The number of non-Japanese here relying on social welfare has grown significantly over the past decade, a labor ministry official said Monday, as the elderly in their ranks increase at a rapid pace. A monthly average of 47,058 households with at least one non-Japanese member ...
National / Media | MEDIA MIX Feb 10, 2018
Did press reports of a lawsuit spur an amendment to the welfare ministry's policy on benefits?
by Philip Brasor
On Jan. 16, the Fukushima District Court ruled in favor of a woman and her daughter who had sued the city of Fukushima for cutting their welfare benefits. When the woman’s daughter was in high school, the woman received a grant scholarship to help ...
National Feb 9, 2018
Japan to boost safety at shelters for the needy in wake of deadly Sapporo fire
The government approves a bill to improve fire safety at shelters for the needy after a blaze killed 11 people at such a facility in Sapporo about a week ago.